What If
by xorie5
Summary: What if another woad warrior had been found in the depths of Marius' dungeons? Iraina finds herself in the midst of those she has been fighting for 15 years. Will she be able to put aside her differences and find friends among enemies? LancelotOC Ch 14 Up
1. Default Chapter

Hello Everyone! This is my first non LOTR fanfic. So... if it's completely horrible, it's due to new experience. I seen the movie a few times and I absolutely love it. So, I decided to write a fanfic and save a couple lives. Lol. I hope you enjoy it!

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Arthur or Guinevere. Nor do I own Bors, Gawain, Galahad, Dagonet, Tristran, or Lancelot (though I wish I did)

I only own Iraina(pronounced I-rain-a) and the little plot bunnies who eat my carpet.

**What If...**

****

**Summary: What if Guinevere and Lucan weren't the only ones pulled from the dungeon by Arthur and his knights? What if another woad warrior had been found in Marius' dungeons? Iraina finds herself in the midst of those she has been fighting for fifteen years. Will she be able to put aside her differences and find friends among enemies? LancelotOC**

**Chapter One: Rescued**

****

Iraina rubbed her manacled wrist against the rough stone wall. The small white scratch left behind marked her fourteenth day in Marius' dungeon. Looking at the crude iron chains around her wrists Iraina cursed the Romans for the countless time. It shamed her to be placed in some man's dungeons and being violated of her own private rights. Licking her lips, she looked in the direction of Guinevere's cell. "Gwen?" she asked horsely, her voice scratchy from the lack of water.

"What?" came the equally soft reply.

"Do you think that we'll ever get out of this hole?" she asked.

Guinevere's answer made Iraina's hope lower another notch into almost nothing.

"I have given up hope of ever breathing the forest air again. Nor do I think that I will ever feel the wind on my face nor the grass under my feet."

They stopped talking after that. Their parched throats made it painful to speak. Iraina retreated to her own thoughts. She could still clearly remember the day she was caught...

_Flashback_

_A gray overcast sky greeted Iraina when she woke from her light slumber. A perfect day to match my moodshe thought bitterly. Merlin had sent her out to find out what had happened to Guinevere, who had been sent out on a mission to find out what a Roman man by the name of Marius, was doing to the Britons he kept as his serfs. It was a fairly safe mission. But the problem was, she had never returned. So Iraina had been sent after her, even though she would rather had stayed and helped with the rebellion that was taking place along the Hadrian's Wall. _

_Silently Iraina gathered her things and broke camp. Quickly, she made her way towards the roman man's villa. When she arrived at the village, she noticed the guards at the wall patrolling back and forth. Moving silently through the woods, Iraina slipped past the guards and to the other side of the forest, closer to the small village. One of the serfs was walking right in front of her, so Iraina reached out and grabbed the back of the man's robes and pulled him over to her hiding spot. Swiftly she pulled a knife and placed it at his neck. "Be still." she whispered in the man's ear. They watched as a roman guard walked by where she was hiding. As soon as he was gone, Iraina removed the knife from the man's neck and turned him to face her. Outwardly, Iraina's face was stern, her eyes piercing, but inwardly she was grinning. This man had to have been at least ten years older than her, but it looked as if he had never been more frightened in his life. Pointing the knife towards the man's heart, Iraina stepped forward. _

_"I won't hurt you if you answer truthfully." she said. "Agreed?" The man nodded numbly. Iraina lowered the knife to her side. "My name is Iraina. I am looking for one of my kin. Have you seen or heard anything about a woman woad coming anywhere near here?" she asked urgently. The man, clearly frightened, opened and closed his mouth as if trying to speak. Iraina rolled her eyes in frustration, she took a step away and sheathed her knife, distancing herself from the frightened man. "You need not fear me. You are of my blood. I have no wish to cause you harm. I only need to know if you have seen anyone else like me." The man stared at her for a moment before slowly nodding._

_"A woman with blue tattoos similar to yours was captured almost a week ago. Our master Marius had her taken down in to the..." the man's voice dropped to a whisper, as if afraid of speaking his next words "...the stone chamber."_

_Iraina's brow furrowed. "Stone chamber?" she asked, "what is that?" the man in front of her looked around, as if fearing someone would over hear him. "It is what we people of the village call the evil place that the master keeps. It is where some are taken... when they defy our master. Once they go in... they are never seen again." The woad warrior nodded thoughtfully at the given information. As far as she could see, Guinevere had been caught and placed in Marius' dungeon. Looking back at the man in front of her, she said._

_"Go now, and do not speak of our meeting. Is that understood?" The man nodded and he stumbled back out into the village. Iraina watched him go, making sure that none of the guards asked him any questions. Once she was sure that his absence had been unnoticed, she swiftly made her way up into the nearest tree, quickly climbing to a height where she could see the entire villa. Scanning her immediate surroundings, Iraina looked for something that would give her a clue as to Guinevere's whereabouts. Two red caped men caught her attention. They were standing outside an ominous looking stone doorway. It was obvious that they were guarding it. _

_"Stone chamber." she muttered to herself. Slowly, she started back down the tree. As she was nearing the bottom, the branch she was standing on collapsed from underneath her. With a gasp, Iraina fell from the tree, landing with a crash on the forest floor. The noise caused the closest patrolling guards to come investigate the sound. Painfully, Iraina gained her feet. She stood just as one of the Roman's spotted her. With a cry, he started back towards the villa, trying to get help, but his call was cut short by the small knife that had embedded itself in the man's neck. Unfortunately, His cry had been heard by his comrades. Shouting from across the estate made Iraina curse under her breath. Before she had time to hide, a dozen Roman guards burst through the foliage. Iraina new that their intentions were to take her captive as well. She also knew that if it was to be done, she wouldn't come quietly. They would have to fight her for her captivity. As they moved towards her, she pulled her twin long knives from her back and stood in a fighting stance. The roman men laughed at her, she only scowled in return. The first man lunged at her, sword swinging. Quickly bringing up her knives, she blocked the wild swing at her head. Pulling away, she turned and twisted her blade around, jamming it into the man's side, killing him. His comrades watched him fall to the ground. Iraina glared at the remaining Roman's, challenging them to take her. Suddenly, at some unspoken signal, they all rushed her at once. Iraina barely had time to block the first attack before having to duck a wild swing to her head. Turning quickly, Iraina plunged her knife into one of the Roman's legs, twisting it painfully before yanking the weapon back out. The roman guard fell to the ground, howling in pain. The next few moments were a blur of flashing blades, and clanging metal to Iraina. Moving into a roll to escape a thrust to her side, Iraina drove her knife into the other man's chest, killing him instantly. As she stood to continue fighting, she felt the cold bite of a steel blade against her neck._

_"Put down your weapons or die, wench." a voice hissed in her ear. Iraina hesitated, loathe to give into the romans who already had control of half her country. When she didn't comply to the man's demands, he pressed the blade harder against her throat, drawing blood. Iraina felt the trickle of blood seep down her neck. Sighing, she dropped her weapons, and raised her hands in a gesture of surrender. Immediately, guards had her hands bound with rope and had place a loop around her neck, insuring that she wouldn't escape. Looking around, Iraina noticed that she had killed seven of the original thirteen men who had first charged her. _

_"Seems like you underestimated me. I would not think it wise to do so again. It may cost you your life." Iraina said coldly to the man who was holding her captive. The man just grunted in reply, but Iraina could tell that he was disturbed. As she came closer to the large house, she noticed the people in the village staring at her. The looks on their faces unsettled her. They were not looks of fear or hate, or even apprehension; but pity, sorrow, and sadness. Two serfs stationed at the wall doors quickly opened them when the captain motioned for them to open the gates. Roughly pushing her through, he jerked the rope around her neck, pulling her towards the front of the house. A plump man came bustling through the front doors. Iraina looked upon the man with disdain. She watched as his wife followed meekly behind the man, as if afraid to do anything but stand behind him. _

_"On your knees." the man behind her said gruffly. When Iraina didn't move, he repeated himself, his voice becoming more dangerous. "On. Your. Knees. Wench. Still, the woman did not make any attempt to get down on her knees. Growing angry, the man yanked the rope around her neck backwards, and pulled her hair, forcing her to raise her head. Then another guard punched her in the stomach, knocking the wind out of her. Finally, someone kicked her in the back of the knees, making her fall to the ground. The man in front of Iraina smirked, and nodded to his guards, showing that he was pleased. Iraina noticed that his wife had looked away from the scene, as if she didn't want to be a part of it. Inwardly, Iraina felt sorry for the poor woman who had married a monster and had become his slave. Her attention was diverted when the Roman man crouched in front of her._

_"My name is Marius, and this is my villa. I can see that you are just like that other demon woman who came here and started a chaos in my village. I can not let you leave now that you have stumbled across my lovely home." He laughed cruelly. "Men, give the lady some, lodging and make sure that she is comfortable." _

_The guards laughed roughly pulled Iraina to her feet. Dragging her across the yard, the pulled her into the stone doorway. As they passed through the door, Iraina noticed the manacles hanging from the ceiling. An ominous feeling started to form in the pit of her stomach. The guards led her down a stair case until they came to another door. Pulling a set of keys out his pocket, he quickly unlocked the door and swiftly opened it. The smell that hit Iraina's nose almost made her gag. It was the smell of death, and rotting flesh. The man rudely shoved her inside, down another small set of stairs until they came to the main part of the dungeon. Iraina's eyes scanned the row of small cells, noticing the dead body's in most of them. A few still had live prisoners in them, but only a few. Iraina's heart jumped into her throat when she saw the dirty and tired form of Guinevere in one of the cells. Rage filled her as she noticed the bruises and cuts along her face, and the hollowed look in her eyes. _

_"This is another one of those blue demons that killed seven of my men. Deal with her in any way you see fit." the captain said to the two priests in front of him. He placed the rope in their hands and handed them each a dagger. "Do not underestimate this woman, if you aren't careful, she'll kill you and escape. That is my warning to you." with those words, the guards left the dungeons. _

_Iraina felt the smooth steel across her neck and immediately tensed. _

_"So, you are another pagan?" one of the priests asked scornfully. "It is of no matter, you shall be punished for your sins, just like the others were." He poked her in the back with the back of a wood hatchet and forced her towards Guinevere's cell. Motioning to the other priest, the cell door was unlocked. Quickly shoving her head down, he pushed her into the cell. Guinevere was unconscious, and didn't move at their arrival. Moving past her, the scruffy haired priest moved towards an even smaller cell door in the back of the wall. Opening it, he pushed her inside, grabbing her wrist and quickly locking it in a crude iron manacle. Iraina struggled with him, trying to keep her other arm free, but was stopped by the man's warning. _

_"Stop struggling with your arm. Or I'll cut it off." The crazed look in his eyes told the woad woman that he was serious. She nodded slowly, and watched helplessly as he placed her other arm in another manacle. As he closed the door, Iraina realized how small the cell really was. There was not even enough room to stretch her legs out. They were curled under her in an attempt to make enough room for her body to fit in. With a sigh, Iraina leaned back against the wall, hoping that this would be over soon._

_Unfortunately, it was not. The days were blended together with pain. The small cramped space caused her muscles to cramp, and the lack of food and water made her weak. On occasion, the priests would take her out only to torture her; the whip and studded glove, along with various other machine like devices, being their favorite tools. After a week, the priests had tired of seeing her in the warrior outfit that she wore, and removed all of her clothing, dressing her in rags, thinking them more fit for a sinner. When that had happened, Iraina had never felt more violated in her life. Who were these people to undress her when she was hanging by chains in their dungeon. If they were truly men of god, she did not want to have anything to do with their god. _

_The first time that Marius' wife had visited her, she had been skeptical of the woman's attentions. But after seeing the food and water that she had brought, Iraina nearly wept, knowing that the woman was risking her life to keep her alive. A fate that she was not sure if she wanted anymore. After that first day, Fulicana came only twice more. _

_A small hole in Iraina's cell was the only sight of the outside world that she had. Every morning, the sun's first rays of light would shine through for a few minutes, the the light would fade as the sun moved across the sky. It was her only way of knowing the number of days that she had been in the dungeons of the Roman man. Oh how she hated the romans..._

_End Flashback_

A noise outside her sell brought Iraina back from her musings. She watched hopelessly as the greasy haired priest unlocked Guinevere's cell door. She knew that he wasn't taking Gwen out, they didn't do much to the woad, but, the monks seemed to dislike herself more than any other of the captives. Anger boiled within her as he struck Guinevere across the face for no reason. As he came closer to her small cell, a look of disgust became clearly visible on his face. Quickly he slid a key into the lock , unlocking the lock that held the thick chains to the iron bars. Pulling the bars open, he reached in and roughly grabbed her face. Jerking her, he forced her to look him in the eye.

"Your racket has disturbed me in my prayers to the Lord." he seethed. "And for that you must be punished." he smiled cruelly as he pulled the studded glove out of his robe pocket. Iraina groaned inwardly. It seemed as though the monks used everything she did as an excuse to hurt her. She pulled as far away into the cell as she could before the walls stopped her. Closing her eyes, Iraina waited for the inevitable to come. Pain flashed across her being as the studded glove scraped across her face again, and again. When the priest finally stopped, blood was seeping from the corners of Iraina's mouth, and from the scabs that had been reopened on her face.

"That should teach you to be a little more quiet next time." the monk said with a mocking smile. He rubbed the glove harshly across her face a finale time, issuing a silent warning. Iraina couldn't suppress the groan of pain the action pulled from her lips. She watched helplessly as the monk crawled back out of her small cell and relocked the chains. He turned to leave, then, hesitated. Calling to the other priest, he asked for the small wooden hatchet they kept to cut the wood to keep the small fire going. As soon as it was in his hands, he turned back to Iraina. He smiled and placed the key to the lock on the ground. Raising the hatchet above his head, he grinned evilly at the woad woman in the cell and brought it down hard on the key, splitting it into pieces. Then, he picked up the now useless key and threw them back at Iraina. As the pieces came to a stop right in front of Iraina, all hope faded. She stared at the shattered key, and didn't notice when the monk got up and let Guinevere's cell. She looked up at her friend with empty eyes.

"Gwen?" she asked. "If you ever get out of here, don't let my body rot in this hell hole. I want to be burned, and have my ashes thrown into the forests in which I was raised. Don't let them forget me." She licked her bloody lips, and spoke for the last time to Guinevere. "Don't let them leave without me, don't let them leave. Do you promise?" She smiled sadly as Guinevere nodded slowly with tears falling down her face. She knew that it was probably the last time she would ever be speaking with Iraina.

With a sigh, Iraina leaned back against the stone, wincing as her lacerated back came into contact with the rough surface. She closed her eyes, and gave in to her body's exhaustion.

As Lancelot came down the steps of the Roman man's dungeon, he choked on the smell of rotting flesh. The smell alone was almost enough to make him run back to the surface for fresh air. As he cleared the small doorway, he heard a voice from within.

"Who are these defilers of the Lord's temple?" a greasy haired monk came out from around a corner. The sarmation knight only pushed himself past the man, and stopped dead in his tracks at what he saw. Dead bodies were lying in all of the small cages, each at a different stage of rotting. Turning disgusted eyes on his commander, he said,

"The work of your God." Arthur just stared at him before looking away.

"Check them, see if any are still alive." he said, addressing his knights. Dagonet opened a cell and looked in and covered his mouth and looked away.

"This one's dead." he stated somewhat shot of breath. Gawain looked repulsed by the smell.

"By the smell they're all dead." he said disgustedly. Lancelot ignored him and cut the chains of a cell, continuing to do what his commander had ordered. One of the priests lunged at the curly haired knight, yelling at him to stop. But before he could even finish his sentence, Lancelot had pulled one of his swords and stabbed the man in the chest, killing him.

The other monk looked on appalled. "How dare you!" he accused. "He was a man of God!" Lancelot turned on the man, his eyes glaring daggers as he pointed a finger at him.

"Not my God!"

The knights continued checking the cells, but kept finding more and more dead prisoners. Then Dagonet opened one of the small hole cells and cried out. "Arthur!" He reached in and pulled out a small boy. Placing the frightened child on the rim of the cage, he looked pointedly at the child. "You must not fear me." he said commandingly. The young boy could only nod.

Lancelot followed Arthur and knelt down and looked into the last cell. He was surprised to see a young woman still alive in the cage, battered, but living. He looked up at Arthur and watched as the roman commander drew Excalibur and swung at the chains holding the bars up. He then got on his knees and lifted the woman out of the cage. With Lancelot leading the way, they all made their way back out into the open. Lancelot threw the torch into the ground, looking relived to be out of the evil place. Arthur hurried and placed the woman on the ground, calling for water.

From atop his horse, Tristan made the observation that they all had missed. "She's a woad." It was then that Lancelot noticed the blue tattoos running up the woman's legs.

Suddenly, a loud commotion started when the master of the house came running towards Arthur and his knights.

"Stop! Stop what you are doing!" Arthur swiftly rose to his feet.

"What is this madness?!" Marius looked taken aback at the accusatory tone in Arthur's voice.

"They are all pagans here!" he exclaimed as if that explained everything. Galahad looked disdainfully down at the stocky man.

"So are we."

"They refuse to do the tasks god set out for them!" Arthur glared angrily at the man.

"You mean they refuse to be your serfs!" he shouted. Marius looked flabbergasted.

"You are roman, you understand. And you are a Christian. You!" he said, turning on his wife. "You kept them alive!" he slapped his wife across the face. Lancelot started to move forward angrily, but Arthur beat him too it. He punched Marius in the face, knocking the man down. Immediately he had drawn his sword and had placed it at his neck. Two of the guards rushed forward, but Marius stopped them when he felt the blade press against his neck. Glaring up at Arthur, he narrowed his eyes.

"When we get to the wall, you will be punished for this heresy." he said angrily

"Maybe I should just kill you now and seal my fate." Arthur growled. At that moment, the priests came over, and one of them started talking, making Arthur take his attention away from the man on the ground. He removed his sword from the man's throat, allowing him to get up onto his feet.

"I was willing to die with them, as to lead them to their rightful place. It is God's will that these sinners be sacrificed." he said mournfully. Arthur stared at the man, clearly angered. "Then I shall grant his wish. Wall them back up."

"Wait..." Arthur looked back at the woman he had just saved. Moving quickly to her side, he was surprised as she gripped his wrist.

"There was another woad in there. She was my friend, and I promised her that I would not let her rot in that hole. Please, go and retrieve her body, so that I may be able to grant her wish." Guinevere's words were soft, and Arthur barely heard them. Looking down at the woman, he nodded, showing her that he would do it. Guinevere smiled gratefully as tears fell down her face. Then she closed her eyes, and fell into an exhausted sleep.

The roman commander looked up at his knights, silently asking them which ones would go back into the death filled hole.

"I will go." Artur looked up gratefully at Lancelot. Nodding, he turned back to lift Guinevere into his arms.

Lancelot lit another torch and walked back into the dungeons. He was aware that Gawain had followed him in, watching his back. Coming again into the row of cells, he looked in the cells, looking for a body with the telltale blue tattoos of a woad warrior. After his first inspection, he couldn't find another woad woman. Going back, he rechecked the cells, making sure that he didn't miss anything. When he got to the cell that had held Guinevere, he looked all along the walls, seeing if he had missed something. A piece of brown cloth hanging at the back of the wall caught his attention. Handing the torch to Gawain, he crawled to the back of the cage, and moved the cloth away.

He heard Gawian gasp in shock behind him. When he had pulled the cloth away, he had revealed an even smaller cage. And inside, was crammed a woman, practicality crushed in the small space. The smeared blue paint on her skin told Lancelot that he had found whom he had been looking for.

It was his turn to gasp in surprise when the figure opened her eyes and looked dazedly at him. He had been sure that the woman would have been dead. He swiftly pulled one of his blades and drew back his arm and slashed at the chains holding the bars up, cutting them down and bringing the metal bars to the ground with a crash. Sheathing his sword, Lancelot moved closer to the injured woman, slowing when he saw her shrink away from him. He noticed the cruel manacles holding her wrists above her head. Moving his hand to the front of his armor, he pulled a throwing dagger from it's holster. He reached over to place it in the manacle's lock, but stopped when he saw the terrified look in the woman's eyes.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you." he soothed softly. He moved to resume his original purpose. The Sarmation knight worked slowly, after noticing the frightened shaking of the woman in front of him. Quickly he worked the knife around the key hole until he heard the satisfying click of the locking mechanism. He did the same to the other side, making sure that he did not aggravate the woman's wounds any further. Gently, he pulled the woad from her cell, wincing as she whimpered in pain as her legs straightened out. Moving as quickly as possible, Lancelot inched out towards the open area.

"Gawain!" he called. Immediately Gawain's face appeared in front of the cell. "I need you to take her while I get out from here. It's too small for me to just duck under." The blonde haired knight nodded and reached under and took the woman from Lancelot's arms. He started slightly when he realized that the woman was still alive. Lancelot swiftly came out of the cage and gently took the woman back.

"Come on, let's leave this place." he said. Together they walked back out into the fresh air.

**Okay! That was the first chapter! I hope you liked it! This is a whole new experience for me, and I'm still testing the waters. Also, as my readers, I think that you should know that I play for my school's JV volleyball team. As a freshman. That was kinda cool. So, we practice five times a week, leaving very little time for anything else, writing included. So, if it's taking forever to update, e-mail me, and I'll gladly give you an estimate as to when the next chapter will be up. Thanks! **

**Elvenstar5**


	2. Among Enemies

****

**From now on, Reviewer Responses will be displayed at the bottom of each chapter.**

****

****

**Chapter Two: Among Enemies**

****

Pain was the first thing that Iraina noticed when she awoke the next morning. Opening her eyes, it took most of her will power to keep from crying out at the pain that the light caused to her light sensitive eyes. Closing her eyes tightly against the blinding light, Iraina tried to figure out where she was. The rocking motion told her that she was in a wagon of some kind. Searching back through her memories, Iraina tried to find some clue that would allow her to figure out where she was. At first all she could remember was pain, and darkness. Then, a man in shining armor flashed across her memory. Using that piece of information, she gathered that someone had brought her out of the man's dungeons and had placed her in a wagon.

"You're awake." the deep voice made Iraina's eyes fly open. She gave a small shriek at the pain it caused. Suddenly, something blocked the light streaming into her open eyes. Blinking a few times, Iraina willed her eyes to focus faster. When she was finally able to focus on something, she saw that it was a hand shielding the light from her eyes. Squinting, she followed the arm until she saw the face of the person that the hand belonged to.

He was a menacing looking man, almost completely bald, with a scar running down his left eye. His size was intimidating, and he looked as though he was angry. But, his eyes seemed gentle. Iraina's eyes went to the large broadsword strapped to his side. She immediately tensed, not trusting any unknown man who came near her with a sword.

The man above her sensed the change in her demeanor. He followed her gaze and saw that it was on his sword. Moving slowly, he removed the sword from his belt, and placed it gently on the floor of the wagon, showing her that he did not mean her any harm. Even though his gesture was in peace, Iraina still eyed him warily.

"Do not be afraid. My name is Dagonet, you are safe now. Marius will no longer harm you." he soothed. He smiled sadly when he saw Iraina's eyes blaze with hatred and pain at the sound of Marius's name. The knowledge that the man they had been sent to save had killed and tortured many left a burning anger in the pit of his stomach. But he had to put aside his feelings and see to the task at hand. "You are traveling with me, my companions and my commander. The rest of the people from the village are also here. We are traveling east to escape the Saxon's." Dagonet explained.

Iraina relaxed a little, knowing that they were going away from the Saxons. Also, it seemed as though she had been rescued by someone willing to help her. But she did not know enough information to completely satisfy herself.

"Who is your commander?" she asked, wondering if she could speak to him. Even though her voice was hoarse from lack of use, there was no hiding the wariness in it.

Dagonet looked her in the eyes, judging what her reaction would be. "Arthur Castes." he replied evenly.

Iraina's eyes widened slightly in surprise, and then narrowed in a calculated guardedness. She had been rescued from one crazed roman man, to another who had killed countless of her people. _And his own._ She thought bitterly. Immediately she looked for a way to escape. She was discouraged to find that the only exit leaving the wagon was being blocked by the giant of a man, Dagonet. Doing a double take, Iraina's eyes froze on the pile of blankets. A lock of brown hair was peeking out from underneath the furs. She gave a cry of surprise when she realized that it was Guinevere underneath the furs. Pulling herself across the wagon, she slowly made her way towards her friend. When she got there, she pushed herself up and gently pulled away the blankets.

Suddenly, she gasped as pain exploded in her side. She breathed deeply, trying to control the pain. Movement from the other side of the wagon caught her attention and made her look up. Dagonet was rummaging through a bag by his side. Looking back down at her side, Iraina saw the tell-tale sign signifying that the stab wound to her side had been reopened. She scowled darkly as she remembered how she had acquired it. One of the priests had given it to her, thinking that he could bleed the sins out of her. He had ended up almost killing her.

Her head snapped up when she noticed Dagonet making his way slowly over to her. Iraina snarled at him.

As Dagonet looked upon the woman in the wagon, he was reminded of a cornered animal who was trying to protect her den. Nodding slightly, he backed away, but not before tossing a roll of bandages at her. They landed at her feet. She didn't even glance at them, keeping her eyes on him the entire time. Backing up, he checked on finale time on the boy Lucan, and then exited the wagon, closing the deerskin flap behind him.

Iraina watched him go, waiting for him to come back When he didn't, Iraina snatched up the bandages he had tossed at her. Lifting the rags she wore as a shirt above her head, Iraina started slightly when she realized that her side had already been bandaged once. Grimacing, she noticed that the blood was already seeping through the layers of cloth already around her waist.

Quickly, she re wrapped the wound, ignoring the fiery ache in her fingers. Then she placed the soiled bandages off to one side of the wagon, not know what else to do with them. When she was done, she turned her attention back to Guinevere. Her friend was sleeping, but the dark bruises stood out on her fellow warrior's pale face. Gently, she brushed away the hair across the woman's face, quickly tucking it behind her ear. Once sure that her friend would live, Iraina settled down as comfortably as she could, trying to ignore the pain in her body. Sighing, she closed her eyes and fell into a much needed sleep.

When Iraina next woke, she opened her eyes to see a flash of a red cape cross infront of her. Immediately, he eyes flung open, knowing what red meant. Romans…

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Yes, Yes, I know, really short, but I wanted to get something up before I became totally swamped in school work. The next one will be longer, and hopefully I will have it up within one or two weeks. Sorry for the wait! **

**Reviewer Responses:**

**Tara6: Thank you for the review! I am glad that you think that I did an adequate job on my story! I hope you liked this chapter as well. It was somewhat difficult for me to write.**

**ChiaraStorm****: Thanks for the review! I like your story a lot as well! In fact... Anyone who is reading this, go read her story, The Sword and the Bow, it's a great read!**

**Chiefhow****: thanks for the review! I am glad as well when Lance gets the girl! Thanks for your support on the VB court!**

**BebegurlPR****: Thanks! I hope you liked this chapter! Even though it was short.**

**Jemiul****: thanks! I am glad to know that someone will like my story!**

**lindalee4: I updated! I hope this was fast enough, even though it took a while to get up!**

**lotrfan1122: I am glad that you thought that I did a good job on this fic! Thanks for the review!**

**Peta****: Thanks! Here's an update!**

**Thanks everyone for the lovely reviews! The next chapter should be longer, and it should be up in a week or two, depending on how much my teachers hate me and give homework! **

****

****

**Elvenstar5**

****


	3. Failed Escape

Keeping her eyes closed, Iraina pretended to she was still asleep. She heard movement over where Guinevere had been before she had fallen asleep. Slowly, Iraina opened one eye, trying to see who had entered the wagon. All she could see was a red cape. Immediately she stiffened. It had been Romans who had tortured herself and Guinevere. She would not let it happen again. Iraina kept one eye on the roman. If he tried anything, she would cause any harm she could to the man, even if it meant her life in exchange for Guinevere's freedom.

She heard Guinevere move away in wariness, obviously not trusting the roman in the wagon. Then, the soft sounds of unwinding cloth reached her ears. A deep commanding voice, that also seemed gentle spoke in the quietness of the wagon. "Some of your fingers are out of place. I have to push them back. If I don't, you may never use them again."

Iraina winced at the thought. Her own fingers would have to be reset sooner or later. Next, she heard the sounds of bones cracking back into place. She grit her teeth when she heard Guinevere cry out in pain. After a few moments, she heard Guinevere speak.

"They tortured us... With machines. They made us tell them things... things we didn't know in the first place." Guinevere paused. "I'm Guinevere." When those words came out of her friends mouth, Iraina mentally cursed the other woad woman. She knew that Guinevere knew better than to give her right name to an enemy. She didn't have time to dwell on it for Guinevere had continued speaking. "You are Arthur, from the great wall." Iraina started slightly. Arthur had fixed her friends fingers? Her musings were interrupted when Arthur spoke.

"I am." then she heard Guinevere again.

"The famous Briton who kills her own people." it became silent after that, and Iraina quickly closed her eye, continuing to pretend to be asleep. Soon, the man, Arthur, got up to leave. As soon as he left, Iraina's eyes shot open. Immediately, she sat up, ignoring the ache in her side. Moving over, to Guinevere, she saw that she was again asleep, covered in firs and blankets to keep out the chill. Making sure that her fingers were indeed in the correct positioning. After she was positive that there wasn't going to be any permanent damage, Iraina glanced around the wagon. Her goal was to find some kind of weapon that would help her escape the romans. Eyes gleaming, she spotted a small dagger near the side of the moving wagon. Reaching over a small boy, Iraina grabbed the small weapon. Suddenly the flap of the wagon opened. Iraina gasped and quickly pulled away, hiding the knife behind her. A curly haired knight with shining armor and two swords strapped to his back entered the carriage. He looked surprised when he found Iraina glaring at him maliciously. Slowly he moved into the wagon.

"So you are awake." he said, trying to start a conversation. Iraina almost started slightly at the familiar sound to the man's voice. She was sure that she had heard it before, but she couldn't place where. But it was no matter, he was under the Roman empire, he could not be anyone worth her attention. She stopped thinking about the man when he started speaking again.

"I am surprised actually. After the injuries you sustained, we weren't sure that you were going to make it." He smiled at her. His smile faltering when her gaze hardened. Deciding that it was just because she didn't trust him, Lancelot ignored her actions and continued with his original message. "The caravan has stopped for the night. If you wish to bathe, I will send in someone to help you and your friend."

He paused, seeing her face turn from apprehension, to anger and disgust. "What is wrong?" he asked, not understanding her display of emotion.

Iraina made a noise somewhere between a growl and a snort. "I know what you and your _commander_ are going to do. You are Romans. First, you will use us for your own personal pleasure, then you will have us thrown into some dark dungeon and torture us until the pain becomes too unbearable. After that, you will lock us in cages and laugh as our bodies rot away into nothing. I think that that is sufficient reason for me not to act kindly towards you." she said coldly.

The man in front of her looked appalled at the words she had just spoken. "That will not happen to you." he stated firmly. The woad warrior smirked.

"I know." she said. She whipped out the knife from behind her back, ignoring the lancing pain that the motion caused to her unset fingers. Swiftly, she grabbed the unsuspecting man in front of her and pulled him towards herself. Placing the dagger at his throat, Iraina grinned coldly.

"I know that now of my fears will happen because you will go out and tell Arthur that either he will let Guinevere and I go, otherwise he will lose the life of one of his knights."

With those words, Iraina gently but firmly nudged the man towards the exit of the wagon.

Moving slowly, so as not to aggravate her wounds further, Iraina made her way out of the wagon. As the cold air hit her skin, she shivered involuntarily. Even though, she almost smiled at the feeling of wind against her face. Shaking her head slightly, she forced the pleasant thoughts away, and focused again at the task at hand. Leaning forward, she whispered in the knight's ear.

"Get their attention. Especially Arthur's, for he is the one I wish to speak to." The curly haired knight nodded slightly, ever aware at the sharp knife at his neck, ready to slit his throat at any time.

"May I have everyone's attention please!" he called out loudly to the people around the caravan. Again, she was struck with the sensation that she had heard the voice before. Something in the back of her mind was telling her that he was the cause of something good that had happened to her, but Iraina was sure that she had never seen him before. Though, maybe she had seen him in one of the battles she had fought in with her fellow woads in their war against the Roman empire.

Iraina watched as the villagers gathered in front of the wagon, openly staring at her and the man she was holding hostage. She heard someone call for Arthur. In her mind, Iraina wished that he would hurry up, for she knew that in her weakened state, she wouldn't be able to stand under her own power while appearing outwardly strong, for much longer. Her eyes were drawn to a person pushing his way to the front of the crowd. Iraina smiled icily when she saw the tell-tale red cape of the Roman commander. Standing up straighter, Iraina watched as the man took in the scene in front of him. She was slightly disappointed, while at the same time impressed at the man's ability to not show any emotion on his face. But she knew that he was worried, by the way that his body tensed and his clenched hands. Addressing him, she spoke in the strongest voice that her water deprived throat allowed her to.

"Arthur, I am here to make a deal with you." she said clearly, but not too loudly, for fear of him hearing the shakiness in her voice. "Will you hear me out?" she held her breath as she waited for a reply from the man. She really didn't want to kill the knight in front of her, but if it meant the freedom for both Guinevere and herself, she would not hesitate to do so in the flick of a wrist. She let out her breath when he spoke.

"I will. Now tell me why you have a dagger to the throat of one of my men." Arthur's deep voice cut across the silent crowd, the coolness in it making Iraina start to think twice about threatening one of his men. She quickly hid her discomfort and continued, trying to sound completely sure of herself.

"I have come to trade the life of your knight to the freedom of my companion and I. I will not allow Guinevere to be tortured again by some foul roman who believes that torturing defenseless women and children is a right by god. I will no suffer to watch as one I love as family wither away into nothing. Decide quickly Arthur Castes of the Great wall, for I will not hesitate to cut the throat of your knight if your answer takes too long."

Iraina swallowed, the amount of talking she was doing was taking a toll on her throat. It was becoming more and more painful for her to speak, and even as the seconds ticked by, she could feel her strength quickly ebbing away.

Arthur spoke again, his words calculated and wise. "What good will it do you? If I agree, you will not get far in your condition. I have seen yours and Guinevere's wounds. You won't last an hour by yourself in the woods during the ice cold of this land's winter. It is because of my men that you are still alive right now. You should actually be thanking us rather than trying to kill us. And besides, what do you think will happen if I refuse? Yes, you will kill my knight, but in doing so, you will so anger me that I will have no thoughts about killing you where you stand. And I have no doubt that the rest of my knights will agree with me." He paused, hoping that his next words would make her drop the dagger at his best friend's throat.

"And if you do kill him, I will take the life of you, and your friend Guinevere as revenge." he didn't mean a word he said about killing the other woad, Guinevere, but he had seen the look of loyalty in the woman's eyes when ever she mentioned Guinevere, and he decided to play on it, hoping to make her surrender. To his relief, he saw the woman's hand waver as he mentioned killing Guinevere. It was all that Lancelot needed.

Iraina shook with fatigue and indecision, she couldn't let them kill Guinevere. She couldn't it- she was jarred from her thoughts as the man she was holding captive grabbed her hand and flipped her over himself, knocking her to the ground. Immediately he was on top of her, wrestling the knife out of her hands. With his knees, he pinned her shoulders to the ground. Fear coursed through Iraina. She shook from the painful memories that came unbidden to her mind. Closing her eyes, she prepared herself for the worst.

Lancelot looked down at the woman who had just threatened his life. To his surprise, she was shaking. And he was sure from the look on her face that she was terrified. Noticing the position that he was in, him on top of her, holding her down, he realized with a start why she was so frightened. Immediately he moved off of the woman, allowing her, her space.

Iraina was surprised when the weight lifted off of her shoulders. Opening her eye a crack, she saw the man she had threatened standing above her with a look of concealed horror on his face. Immediately, the fatigue and pain came back to her as her detractions were gone. Biting her lip, she kept herself from crying out as pain shot up her side and through her hands and throat. Her last conscious thoughts were of wondering if she would ever be free again.

Lancelot watched as the woman on the ground struggled with the pain that assaulted her body. He knew that he should be angry at the woman for trying to kill him, but somehow he felt as though he shared her pain of being held captive. He knew what it was like to be under the control of someone else, not being able to think on your own. unconsciously he rubbed his neck where the dagger had been a few moments ago. It was then that he realized how deathly quiet it was in the grove where they had stopped. Looking up, he locked eyes with Arthur. Nodding at his friend and commander, Lancelot assured him that he would be alright. With a curt nod, the roman man turned and started ushering people away from the wagon that was carrying the injured. When the crowd had finally dispersed, Lancelot looked back down at the woman at his feet. She had fallen unconscious due in no small part to the pain she was in. Without really knowing why, Lancelot gently picked up the woman from the ground, starting slightly when he felt how cold her skin was. It was as if he was picking up a piece of ice, rather than a living human being.

Walking back to the wagon, Lancelot carried the woman in his arms as though she were a precious cargo that he had to keep safe. He placed her back into the wagon and pulled up the side of the rags that she wore as a shirt. He winced at the red stain that was seeping through the bandages on her side. The stab wound had reopened again. He needed Dagonet to help him with her.

As if he had heard Lancelot's thoughts, the giant man came thorough the deerskin flap with a needle, thread, and fresh bandages in hand. Dagonet made his way carefully into the wagon. Glancing at the girl, he shook his head. It was a shame that the girl thought that all Romans were worthless scoundrels. Quickly, he set to work, re bandaging her wounds and putting ointment on her bruises. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Lancelot staring intently at the woman. He knew that the younger knight normally would be furious with the woman. But for some reason, he seemed sympathetic of the young woman. It was actually quite puzzling to the older knight. He knew Lancelot had a quick temper, and rarely ever suffered to be threatened. Maybe there was something under the surface that he couldn't see. Dagonet shrugged it off, deciding to be content with watching things unfold from afar. Taking the leftover supplies with him, the knight left the wagon, after taking the little boy Lucan with him, leaving Lancelot alone with the wounded.

Lancelot watched the unconscious woman for quite some time. While he was alone, he was given some time to think. He did not believe that the woman had actually wanted to hurt him. He could tell just by seeing the brief guilt in her eyes right before she had grabbed him. In some ways he connected to the woman. He knew what it was like to forced into doing something by the Romans. It was not a pleasant feeling to be unable to control your own actions. Lancelot felt someone else's eyes on him and he immediately looked around. His eyes landed on another woman leaned up against the back of the wagon. She was watching him with a skeptical look. But there was also a silent warning in her gaze. Lancelot knew that she would harm him if he as much as touched the unconscious woman next to him.

Giving one more glance to the woman on the floor of the wagon, Lancelot hopped out of the caravan, leaving the two women alone.

-------------------

Well, that was a little longer than the last time! I hope you all liked it!

Also, I would have a favor to ask of you, my loyal readers. I just recently got a hermit crab, and I don't know what to name him! So…I think THAT I will give that honor to you. So, any names that you want him to possibly be called, go ahead and put them in the review and the winner will get to spend the day with the knight of your choice!!!!

tO ALL YOU gALAHAD lOVERS!!! Did you know that Hugh Dancy is in the movie Ella Enchanted? Still looks just as good. But he doesn't have a beard in this movie. But, there is a scene where he doesn't have his shirt on, so…. Some of you may want to go and rent it.

Anyway, now on to the REVIEWER RESPONSES!!

Tara6- thanks for the great review! Dag will be in the next chapter too!

Fallenangel26- Thanks for the AWESOME review! Thanks for feeling my pain! lol

SunsetSparrow- I'm glad that you liked it! I hope you liked this chapter too!

Veronica- glad that you liked it! There will be some romancy, mushy crap coming up in the next few chapters! So just keep reading!

Well, that was another chapter! Now, just move the mouse and click on the little button that is calling your name! Can't you hear it?

readers hear whispers of their names

Review Review!!!


	4. Nighttime Conversations and Unveiled Sec...

Arthur walked back towards the fire that his men had started. It was late, and everyone was asleep except for Tristan, who was keeping watch, and himself. In his mind, he kept replaying the scene from earlier that day. It pained him to have gambled with the life of his knight and friend. But no one was harmed in the encounter, so not all was lost. He started slightly in surprise when he saw the dark shape of Lancelot sitting in front of the fire. Surely he would have been sleeping. He had kept watch just last night, not getting any sleep. What was he doing awake at this hour? Moving next to his friend, he sat down on the log. Arthur sat there for a while, silently watching his friend. It puzzled him slightly that Lancelot had not gotten angry, nor lost his temper at the woad woman. In fact, it seemed as though the young knight actually sympathized with the woman.

Lancelot's voice startled him from his thoughts.

"I know what it is you think. But it is true." The almost sarcastic tone in his friend's voice made Arthur almost smile. "I keep thinking that I should be angry at the woman, for threatening my life, but at the same time, I cannot." he fell silent again, allowing himself to become lost in the dancing of the flames in front of him. Confused, Arthur waited a moment before asking.

"What do you mean, you cannot?"

Lancelot sighed. "I have been trying to figure out that myself. It is hard to explain, but for you, my friend, I will try." he paused again, thinking. The two sat in silence, with only the sounds of the dying fire to break it. Before long, the curly haired knight spoke again. "I cannot help but feel sympathy for this woman. I don't even know her name, yet I feel drawn to her. In one way, I think that we have much in common. We both fight for freedom, her for her country, and me for the ability to go home. She did not want to kill me; that much I know from her eyes. I saw regret right before she grabbed me in the wagon. She was just trying to get away from anything that she believed would cause the other woman, Guinevere, harm. She is strong, and will not be broken. That devil, Marius couldn't do it, and I don't think anyone will." Lancelot stopped speaking and turned back to the fire, which was quickly dying.

In all honesty, Arthur still did not understand Lancelot's reasoning. The knight's thoughts were broken and unorganized, but he accepted it, knowing that his knight was confused himself. With a tired sigh, the roman commander stood from his seat on the log. "Well, Lancelot, when you find peace in your thoughts, get some rest. We have another long day of traveling tomorrow. I will leave you to your thoughts. Goodnight." Lancelot just nodded absently, placing his elbows on his knees, he leaned forward and rested his head in his hands. Arthur shook his head, a small smile escaping his lips. In all the years he had been with Lancelot, he had never seen him so focused on something. Suppressing the yawn that was about to leave his lips, Arthur left his friend and went to his bed roll, quickly falling asleep.

Lancelot was aware of his friend and commander leaving, but it didn't stop him in his thoughts. When he had first seen the woman in the cage, he had been filled with an immense sorrow. No one should ever have had to go through anything like what the woad had been through. He had been there when Dagonet had dressed her wounds, and had been astounded by the sheer number of them. Some much worse than others, and some small, but placed so that they would cause a great amount of discomfort and pain to the person they were inflicted on. But the fact that she had survived the abuse forced upon her was a sign of her strength. And when he had been on top of her pinning her down with his knees, the amount of terror in her face and eyes had been unimaginable to comprehend. His blood burned as he thought about what had happened to her to make her fear the position of being held down by a man. He sighed wearily. He was too tired to continue thinking about it. Rubbing his face, he stood and quickly doused the last of the flames. Slowly, he made his way to his sleeping roll, and lay down upon it, allowing sleep to overcome him.

The next morning, snow was falling gently over the mountains. It was a light flurry, but enough to make traveling quickly dangerous for the villagers. It was mid morning when Iraina woke again. She opened her eyes to find the worried face of Guinevere above her.

"You're finally awake!" Guinevere said relived. "It took you long enough. What where you thinking? Threatening one of the knights like that? It was folly. They do not mean to hurt us." As Iraina's sleep fogged mind registered her friend's words, she sat up abruptly.

"My actions were folly!?" she exclaimed. "I was just trying to get out of here! Guinevere, do you not realize it? Arthur is a roman! He works for Rome! Our enemy! Don't tell me that they won't bring us to the wall and leave us in the custody of the Romans. And you, you have already given your name to them. How do you know that they are to be trusted? Do you remember what happened to us last time when we were under the custody of a roman, or have you already forgotten the hours of torture and starvation? I don't know about you, but I am not about to let that happen to us, to you, again, no matter the cost. We will fight again, and when we do, we will get our freedom." Iraina's outburst caused Guinevere to shrink back against the far wall of the wagon.

Immediately Iraina regretted her harsh words. She had overtaxed her throat, and it was burning. She took a shuddering breath in, and all of a sudden started coughing. Racking coughs shook her frame, causing her to double over, putting pressure on her side. Iraina tried to still the coughing, but no matter what she did, the coughing wouldn't stop. Guinevere watched in horror as her friends face started to turn blue from the lack of air. It seemed like Iraina was not getting enough air. Guinevere tried to turn Iraina over to rub her back, but her weakened state did not allow her to.

"Somebody! Please, help!" Guinevere cried, as Iraina continued coughing. Her fear only grew when spots of blood appeared on Iraina's lips and the blankets around her. Suddenly, the deerskin flap flew open, and two knights rushed into the wagon. Dagonet immediately grabbed the girl and pulled her into his arms, while shouting instructions to the black haired knight.

"Lancelot! Quickly, start rubbing her back in small circular motions. You, woman, get me some water." Lancelot and Guinevere sprang into action. Slowly, as Lancelot rubbed her back, the coughing started to subside. After it stopped, Iraina was left, gasping for air. She was shaking, and her side was burning.

"Slowly, slowly. You will start coughing again if you breath too quickly now." Dagonet warned, referring to the way she was gulping up the air into her oxygen deprived lungs.

Iraina nodded and took a slow shuddering breath. The last thing she wanted to do was start coughing again. When she finally got her breathing under control, she glanced up at Guinevere and made a silent promise to give the knights a chance at earning her trust. She was interrupted from her silent conversation when something was gently pressed into her hand. Looking down, she realized that someone had placed a cloth in her hand. Surprised, she looked up into the dark brown eyes of the man she had threatened the last time she was awake. Eyeing him warily, Iraina nodded her head slightly in thanks. Even though she had said that she would give them a chance, it didn't mean that she was going to trust the men on the first thing they did. But saving her life was a step in the right direction.

Lifting the cloth to her lips, Iraina quickly wiped her face clean of the blood that she had coughed up. When she was done, she looked at the cloth in surprise. The once white hand cloth was now stained with red. If they hadn't stopped her from coughing when they did, she would be dead now. She doubted that she could have stopped the coughing herself. She opened her mouth to speak, but was stopped by Dagonet.

"No, do not talk. You have already stressed your throat and lungs enough today. What you need now is rest-yes, you do need it, even though you have already slept a great deal. I assure you that a long rest now will allow you to be up sooner. You will have to trust me."

Iraina searched the big man's eyes for something that she could use as an excuse, but all she saw was honesty and concern. Sighing softly in defeat, Iraina nodded and lay back down on the pile of blankets, making herself as comfortable as possible. Immediately her eyes began to droop in weariness. The last thing she was aware of before sleep overcame her was someone gently draping a blanket over her.

When Iraina next woke, she woke to find her stomach complaining loudly for food. Sitting up, Iraina was pleased that the motion did not cause her nearly as much pain as it did before. Looking outside she noticed that it was dark. That meant no one was awake except for the few on watch. Glancing at Guinevere, Iraina made sure that the other woman was completely asleep before quietly making her way to the opening of the wagon.

Pushing aside the deerskin flap of the doorway, Iraina stuck her head outside and breathed in the cool night air. She closed her eyes and smiled. It felt wonderful to be back out in the open, away from the constant smell of death. Opening her eyes again, Iraina slowly unfolded her legs from underneath her and sat on the edge of the wagon. Placing one foot tentatively on the ground, Iraina slowly eased weight onto it. When her leg held, she swiftly put the other leg down and slowly stood up. When she didn't fall, Iraina smiled triumphantly.

Suddenly, her legs buckled and Iraina closed her eyes as she felt herself fall. But, the ground never came. She felt strong arms catch her underneath her knees and behind her back. Hesitantly Iraina opened her eyes to see who had stopped her from falling. Her breath caught in her throat when she found herself looking up into the now familiar dark brown eyes of the knight whose life she had threatened. He gently picked her up all the way and made his way over to the now dying fire.

"You shouldn't be outside, you are not dressed warmly enough." The knight said as he shrugged out of his cloak. Swiftly he placed it around her shoulders and wrapped it around her, keeping out the cold winter wind that was blowing through the woods.

Iraina scoffed. "I have been cooped up in that wagon since I was taken out of that dungeon. I deserve a chance to breathe the free air again. Besides, my stomach-" she paused as her stomach growled loudly. "has told me that it wants to eat." She finished. The knight laughed quietly.

"Well, milady, I think that it one thing that I can help you with. That is, if you will allow me to." He waited as he watched the woad woman on the log next to him. She stared at him openly, trying to judge if he was trustworthy. Finally, after a few moments, she nodded her head and the knight turned away and went over to one of the pack horses and rummaged through the bags for a few moments before pulling out a small loaf of bread and a tankard of ale.

He walked back over to the woad woman and handed her the food. Iraina immediately snatched it from his hands. She instantly started ripping the bread into pieces and was about to shove it in her mouth when an amused but gentle voice stopped her.

"I wouldn't eat very fast if I were you." Iraina paused and looked up at the knight. She saw sense in his words and slowed herself down and slowly at the food he offered her. A silence fell between the two as Iraina ate the bread. Finally, she finished and drank the ale. When she was done, she wiped her face with the rags she wore as a shirt and handed the glass back to the knight.

"I'm sorry." She said quietly. Lancelot looked at her in surprise.

"What for?" he asked.

"What for? I threatened your life, and placed a dagger at throat. I think that that is something to be sorry for." Iraina exclaimed.

A look of understanding passed through the knight's eyes. "There is nothing to be sorry for. You acted as anyone else in your position would have done. You tried to get yourself and your friend free from what you thought was a threat to your life." He paused for a moment, his eyes glazing over slightly. "There is nothing wrong with fighting for freedom." The last part was said quietly and Iraina immediately understood why the knight didn't blame her. He was a man who had been torn from his home to fight for a cause not his own. And he had to fulfill a service of a number of years before he was granted his freedom.

"What is your name?" The knight asked her, while looking at her curiously. He wanted to find out who the woman who was so strong was. He wanted to know her name and tell his children of her, if and when he had children. Even though he had just met her, he knew that she was someone that would play a part in his life. Either big or little, he knew not, but his instinct told him to find out more about the woman that they had found. The way she held herself and spoke told him that she was more important than she seemed.

Iraina looked up at the knight in slight surprise. She didn't think that the man would want to talk to her because she was woad, and the added fact that she had threatened his life earlier. And, she didn't know if she was willing to trust the men enough to tell them her name. She pulled her face into an impassive mask and looked back up at the man.

"Why should I tell you my name?" she asked. The knight shrugged.

"It would be easier to talk to you, and I would like to know the name of the woman who has shone bravery beyond what is expected of her. But, if you wish to keep your name a secret, that is fine with me."

Iraina was startled slightly when the knight said that she was brave. Taking a leap of faith, she let her guard down and answered him.

"My name is Iraina, my lord." She said formally. The knight smiled, the action brightening up his already handsome face.

"Well Iraina, now that we have over come that particular barrier, shall we do this properly?"

Iraina looked up at him confused. For an answer, the knight stuck out his hand.

"Good evening, milady. My name is Lancelot; might I ask the name of a lovely young woman who has graced my presence?" Iraina laughed quietly at his charming remark. She placed her hand in his.

"Iraina, my lord. It is a pleasure to meet such a handsome and daring knight such as yourself." She answered in a friendly sarcastic voice. She started slightly when he pulled her hand up to his lips and brushed his lips over her skin. Iraina gasped slightly when she felt a shock run through her body at the contact.

Lancelot straightened up and smiled cheekily. "I didn't think that you thought so highly of me, Lady Iraina." Iraina started slightly at the title. The fact that she was of noble birth was not widely known, but the knight was treating her with the respect that her title deserved. Slightly on edge, Iraina questioned the man worried that he had found out that she was one of the most important women of the woad tribes.

"Why do you call me lady? I do not deserve such a title." She said, laughing nervously. Lancelot raised an eyebrow.

"Not deserving? Now, I believe that is an understatement. When you first came out, you held yourself proudly, and you have a regal air surrounding you. Your cautious, but wise words also pointed to the fact that you are used to situations where one's words can easily be turned against you. Also, the name Iraina is not unknown to us. You are the daughter of the chief of the largest tribe. Your father is the second in command, following Merlin. I think that that is a reason to treat you with some respect."

Iraina stared at the man in stunned surprise. He was far more observant than she thought. And the knowledge of the knights surprised her. She hadn't thought that she would be recognized by her name, except by Arthur. Silently she cursed herself. She should have known better. With a determined sigh, she raised her head proudly and waited for the worst.

**Ooo****… a little plot twist.**** Well, what do you think? Was this chapter ok? Because I personally thought that it stank. Oh well, please review!**

**p.s. oh, and I named my Hermit crab Jacques! Thanks for the great ideas!**

**Elvenstar5**


	5. Trust

Iraina sat waiting for Lancelot to shout the alarm and raise the romans against her. A moment of tense silence passed between them. After a while, Iraina grew disconcerted at the knight's unwavering gaze. Immediately Iraina's defenses went up. He wasn't reacting like she had expected him to. That alone made her wary of his intentions. Narrowing her eyes with slight confusion woven in her eyes, she glared.

"What are you waiting for?" She asked coldly, holding out her arms mockingly, as if waiting for him to put chains on her wrists. Lancelot just shook his head sadly.

"Nay milady. You were a captive of Rome, just like I am now. In that sense we are alike. I will not hand you or Guinevere over to the bishop if I can help it. And I daresay that neither will Arthur." Iraina lowered her arms in relief.

"You aren't going to make Gwen and I go back to the romans?"

Lancelot smiled gently, and shook his head. Tears of relief rose to Iraina's eyes. Blinking furiously, she tried to stop the tears, but one lone pearl drop escaped and fell slowly down her face. Closing her eyes, Iraina took a deep breath. "Thank you." she said softly. "I do not think that I would have had the strength to face that again."

The sounds of someone walking towards her reached her ears. She was aware of Lancelot coming towards her and sitting down on the log next to her. Two rough fingers slipped under her chin and gently turned her face. Iraina opened her eyes in surprise. She found herself staring into Lancelot's deep brown eyes.

"I do not believe that is true." The sincerity shone in his eyes. Iraina was confused. This knight, her enemy, was trying to comfort her. A warning barrier clanged into place. She pulled away from the knight, a guarded expression on her face.

"Why should I trust you?" she asked, the cautious, cold edge back in her voice. "You have been serving Rome for the past fifteen years. You and your fellows have killed my people, my brothers and sisters. Rome is my enemy, because you serve under the command of a Roman, I have no reason to show you trust. But trust I have given you. I gave you my name. So tell me now, was I wise in my trusting of you? Can I hold you to your word that you will allow Guinevere and I to go free? Decide now and speak!"

Lancelot stood quickly and moved in front of the woad woman. "I tell you now, Iraina of the woads, trust you gave me and I will not forget it. As you know, I have been under the service of Rome, but we did not have a choice. It was either go with the Romans, or watch as they slaughtered your family and burned your village. Do not judge us by our service to Rome, for we were forced into it. I tell you now, no Sarmation has a real quarrel with the woads. We simply follow the orders given to our commander, and in turn, given to us. We do not choose who we fight, or even to fight, but fight we must, for our families, for home." He fell silent and stared openly at the woman. A silence fell over the camp; the last of the dieing embers cast an eerie glow over the knight's face. Finally Iraina broke the silence with a wearied sigh.

"I am sorry. Again I have allowed the demons of the past to cloud my judgement." Lancelot was confused by this comment. He was about to ask about it when Iraina let out a hiss of pain. She had reached up to more tightly wrap the cloak about her, but had forgotten about her unset fingers. Lancelot's eyes quickly filled with concern.

"Your fingers have been broken for far too long. I need to set them for you, or you will never be able to grip a bow or sword in your left hand again." Iraina let out a shaky breath, and then nodded, giving her consent to the knight to fix her fingers. Lancelot knelt down in front of her, and took her left hand into his own. Iraina bit her lip and looked away. She felt his hand tighten around her fingers, then immense pain took over her senses. She gasped from the amount of agony that her fingers were sending to her brain. One finally loud snap signified that Lancelot was done. Running over to one of the horses, he reached inside the pack saddle and grabbed a roll of bandages. Moving swiftly back to Iraina, he again knelt down and gently wrapped her hand in the cloth, making sure that they wouldn't move while they healed.

Suddenly, Iraina's vision swam. She all of a sudden felt very dizzy and nauseous. Unable to stop herself, Iraina pitched forward, forcing Lancelot to catch her. She rested for a moment, lying on his chest. When she finally caught her breath, her vision cleared and she pushed herself back up into a sitting position.

"Ow..." she breathed softly, grimacing. Lancelot smiled slightly.

"I am sorry, I know that it hurt. Come, let me help you stand." The knight rose to his feet and offered his hand to the woad woman. Gently, he helped her stand. When she got to her feet, she let go of his hand, testing to see if she could stand on her own. When she didn't fall, she smiled.

Opening her mouth to speak, she was interrupted by the sounds of hoof beats in the distance. Lancelot turned towards the sounds, and frowned slightly when the scout, Tristan came galloping into camp. Taking a step towards where Tristan had stopped, Lancelot spoke.

"Tristan, you are back early. What news do you have?" The mysterious dark haired knight shook his head.

"No time. I need to speak with Arthur. Where is he?"

"He is-"

"He is here." A deep voice interrupted. Iraina looked up as a man stepped out from behind the wagon. He was dressed as though he hadn't slept at all. Clothed in his full armor, the silver breast plate glinted in the faint light from the fire. His red cape billowed out from behind him. Iraina was immediately intimidated by this man. His presence demanded respect. But there was something else there as well. It was a kind of gentle power that seemed to draw people to him.

"What is it Tristan?" he asked quietly. Tristan quickly dismounted and came over the the roman commander.

"The Saxons. They did not stop and make camp as we thought they would. They have been traveling through the night. Even now they are gaining on us. What have to move now." Arthur nodded gravely.

"Very well. Lancelot, Tristan, get everyone up. We need to leave in ten minutes." With that he disappeared again behind the wagon. Lancelot and Tristan immediately started carrying out his orders. Iraina made her way back towards the wagon that held Guinevere.

After her meal of bread and ale, Iraina had felt strength flowing back into her body. She felt more energetic than she had in a long time. Climbing back into the wagon, Iraina gently shook Guinevere awake.

"Gwen, Gwen!" she called trying to wake the sleeping woad. She smiled as Guinevere's green eyes fluttered open. When the other woman was finally awake enough, Iraina explained. "The knights are rousing everyone." Guinevere's eyes clouded slightly in confusion.

"Why?" Iraina quickly continued with her explanation.

"The scout, Tristan, I believe his name is, came back a few moments ago saying that the Saxon's did not camp as they believed they would. You do know about the Saxon's right?" Iraina didn't know exactly when Guinevere had been captured, and didn't know how much she knew. When she received the affirmative, she continued. "So, now, Arthur Castes has decided to move out immediately. We leave in few minutes." With those words, Iraina unfolded her long legs and went to sit on the edge of the wagon.

On a thought, she stopped, and turned back to Guinevere. "Have you met Arthur?" she asked. Guinevere nodded with a slightly dreamy look on her face.

"Indeed I have. He was the one who put my fingers back into place. Iraina nodded, the wheels in her head turning as an idea formed slowly in her mind. Thoughtfully, she said, "Do you think..." she paused, looking at Guinevere. The other woad woman smiled, liking the fact that their minds worked the same way.

"Yes, he wants to meet Arthur, and he wants you to be there as well, as your father will be present."

Iraina nodded. She had much to report back to the leaders of the woads. Her attentions was interrupted, when the wagon gave a creak and lurched forward. "That was quick." she commented. Guinevere laughed, then shivered and pulled the furs closer around her shoulders. As soon as the wagon started moving, a cold wind had started to slip in between the cracks in the wagon walls. Iraina shivered as well, and pulled the cloak she had around her shoulders tighter.

Cloak.

Iraina stopped dead. She didn't have a cloak. This was Lancelot's! Grabbing a fistful of the material, Iraina inspected the fabric. It was a dark blue, with small neat stitching. It was dirty, but not overly so. The edges were worn and frayed, but the cloak still fulfilled it's purpose. It was warm.

"Where did you get that cloak Rain?"

Iraina looked up from her inspection. "One of the knights gave it to me while I was outside. I spent some time talking with him, and I gave them the chance that you wanted me to." she paused, "I...I gave them my name. I hope that I haven't done ill by this, but I do not think that I have. I did what you asked. I gave them a chance. Now they will have to decide how to use it." Guinevere nodded. She knew what it meant giving out one's name. She also knew that she had deserved the lecture she had gotten because what she had done had been very unwise. She herself was someone of great importance. Merlin was her father, and if Arthur had been a normal power hungry Roman, they both most likely would be dead.

Guinevere watched as Iraina moved to the edge of the wagon. She seemed to relish in the feel of the wind against her face. The white bandage around her left hand caught Guinevere's attention. "When did you get your hand fixed?" she asked. Iraina glanced down at her hand, then back at Guinevere.

"Lancelot fixed it for me." Holding her hand up closer to her face, Iraina stared at it. "It hurt like hell though."

Guinevere laughed. Iraina often got in trouble for the curse words that came out of her mouth. It happened many times during important meetings, and during speeches. It was just one of the little quirks about her personality.

Iraina turned back towards the outside, leaning her head comfortably against the side of the wagon. Closing her eyes, she breathed in the cold mountain air, filling her lungs with the crisp breeze.

Yes. It was good to be free.

**Well... There was that chapter! I hoped you liked it! **

**Dances King Arthur comes out tomorrow! King Arthur comes out tomorrow! I can't wait! I need to watch it again anyway to get the lines right for the next chapter! **

**Now for the Reviewer Responses!**

**um... actually, I can't do them right now.. I have like, ZERO time to do these. You all are actually REALLY lucky that I got this chapter up at all. I didn't think that would have the time to do it in the chaos that the holidays starts. Sheesh... everything seems to happen at once over christmas break! But, the good news is that I have a whole two weeks off to write the next few chapters, so the updates should have a few of them over the course of three or so weeks! I hope you all enjoyed it!**

**And to those that celebrate Christmas, **

**MERRY CHRISTMAS!!**

**and to everyone else**

**HAPPY HOLLIDAYS!**

**Elvenstar5**


	6. A Change

Gazing outside, Iraina frowned slightly in surprise when she saw an old woman and a young boy far down the road. The older woman was obviously having a hard time keeping the pace, and was leaning heavily on the small boy. Making a quick decision, Iraina jumped out of the moving wagon, and landed on the ground, her legs protesting, but holding up to the treatment. Moving swiftly, Iraina made her way over to the two. As she arrived, the little boy looked up at her with what was easily described as fear. His eyes grew round as he took in the smeared blue paint on her skin, and the small raindrop tattoo on her left cheek. Smiling, Iraina looked down at the little boy, trying to put the little boy at ease.

"Do not be frightened, I can help you." She came closer and held her hands out in peace. "My name is Iraina. And if you want, I will help you." The little boy eyed her warily for a moment.

"How?"

Iraina knelt down and helped the woman stand. Looking between the two, she said, "I was riding in a wagon, but you two can take my place. There are furs, and you can stay warm." The woman started to protest, but Iraina shushed her. "Do not worry about me. I wanted to get out and stretch my legs anyway. It's no trouble at all." The grateful smile from the woman told Iraina all that she needed to know.

"What's going on here?" a voice asked. Iraina turned and looked up. Lancelot was looking down at the three from atop his horse. Iraina peered behind them and saw that the end of the caravan was disappearing behind a bend in the road. Opening her mouth, Iraina started to speak.

"I am helping these two, she-" A small but angry voice interrupted her.

"My grandmother is very tired, and everyone is going too fast. This lady came and told us we could have a ride in the wagon. We didn't mean to fall behind, really!" He glared up at the knight. Lancelot just raised an eyebrow at the boy. Immediately, the boy lowered his head, his voice suddenly becoming meek. "Please sir, don't hurt Grandmother. I will take the punishment for both of us." The little boy raised his head and stood proudly, trying to show that he was not afraid.

Understanding flashed in Lancelot's eyes. He gave a quick glance in Iraina's direction then turned back to the village boy.

"What is your name, boy?"

The small boy swallowed nervously, and stared at the man in front of him. "Loren, my lord." he said quietly. Lancelot smiled and leaned down from on top of his horse.

"Well, Loren, would you like to rid on a horse with a Sarmation knight while we go tell the caravan to wait for your grandmother?" Lancelot asked with a grin.

Loren's eyes lit up and he nodded enthusiastically at the offer. Lancelot lowered himself to the ground and walked over the trio, leading his horse behind him. When he got the them, he lifted the boy easily into the saddle, and then mounted behind him. The knight looked down at Iraina and the old woman.

"Keep moving. I will tell the caravan to stop. Then I will come back and bring you to the wagon. We won't be long." With those words, he kicked the stallion into a smooth canter. Soon they disappeared out of sight around the bend.

Iraina held out her arm and allowed the woman to lean heavily upon it. Together they moved forward, slowly making their way to where the wagon waited for them.

"Thank you." Iraina looked down at the woman as she spoke. "Most would have just continued on, not worrying about those not strong enough to keep up. My name is Katherine, and Loren is my daughter's son, and I am all that he has left. He never knew his father, and his mother passed away two winters ago. I do not have the strength to make this journey on foot, and you allowing us to ride in your wagon is a blessing unlooked for." Iraina nodded, silently accepting the thanks from the older woman.

In actuality, Iraina had been one of those people who would have just watched from afar, not caring if it didn't affect her in anyway. But her time in Marius' dungeons had given her time to think, and to appreciate life much more than she ever had before.

The sound of a horse's hooves brought Iraina out of her thoughts. They both looked up to see Lancelot riding towards them. He rode right up to them and dismounted.

"Where is Loren?" Katherine asked, a note of worry creeping into her voice.

Lancelot smiled and came towards the pair.

"Do not worry, I left him in the wagon safe and warm with the Lady Guinevere, and another small boy, Lucan. All that is left is you."

Lancelot leaned down and picked up the frail woman. "I feel like a child again." Katherine laughed. Lancelot chuckled with her, and started walking down the road. Iraina listened to the two talk, smiling at their remarks. Something nudged her from behind, forcing her neck forward. Looking behind her, Iraina saw Lancelot's beautiful black stallion looking at her pointedly as if to say, _Are you just going to leave me here?_

Iraina laughed quietly. "Silly horse." she said, and took the animal's reins, leading him down the road. Her breath came out in puffs of steam, and as she walked, she realized how cold it really was. Soon they caught up to the stopped caravan. Arthur was waiting by the side of the wagon, and again, Iraina was stuck by just how different this man was compared to other romans she had met. Arthur pulled the deerskin flap back and Lancelot gently placed Katherine in the wagon. After she was safely inside, Arthur mounted his white stallion and cantered back to the front of the caravan. Lancelot turned back to Iraina and took the reins of his horse as she handed them to him.

After he had taken his horse, Iraina bowed her head to him. "Thank you." she said to him. Looking at her shoulder, Iraina realized that she was still wearing his cloak. "Do you want your cloak back?" she asked, making ready to take it off. Lancelot shook his head. Nay, you need it more than I do." Iraina shrugged, bowed her head again, then turned to walk behind the caravan, wrapping the cloak more tightly around her shoulders to stave off the chill. Moving faster than she should have been so soon after her imprisonment, Iraina hurried to the front of the wagon. Guinevere was sitting on the edge of the wagon, wrapped in furs.

"That was a kind thing you did back there." she commented casually. "Actually, I think it's one of the kindest things I've ever seen you do. Are you sure you weren't poisoned as well?" Iraina rolled her eyes at Guinevere's teasing. But it was true. Iraina had never been a kind hearted person. She had been brought up to not care for anything that did not have anything to do with her. She loved her father, but his ways were harsh. It was about time she learned to be gentle.

"I don't rightly know what happened to me while I was in there. All I know that I was given time to think about what I have done. I see now that I was a cold hearted woman, and now I want to change that. The time I spent in there has changed me. For better or for worse, we will see."

Iraina fell silent then, her mind weighed down by everything that had happened to her. Guinevere opened her mouth to speak, but stopped as Arthur rode up beside the carriage. She watched him for a moment before speaking.

"My father told me great tales of you." she said, smiling slightly.

Arthur rode on without looking at her. "Really. And what did you hear?"

Guinevere grinned, glad to have his attention. "Fairy tales. The kind you hear about people so brave so selfless they cannot be real. Arthur and his knights. A leader both Britain and Roman. And yet, you chose your allegiance to Rome. To those who take what does not belong to them. The same Rome that took your men from their homeland.

Arthur turned his horse angrily towards the woad woman. "Listen lady, do not pretend to know anything about me or my men."

Guinevere smirked, she was getting on his nerves. Leaning her head back against the wood, she glanced at him. "How many Britons have you killed?"

Again, Arthur swiveled in his saddle to look at her. "As many as tried to kill me. It's a natural state of any man to want to live."

"Animals live. It's a natural state of any man to want to live free. In their own country." She paused and stared wistfully out across the land, then turned her eyes back to Arthur. "I belong to this land. Where do you belong Arthur?"

Arthur was silent for a moment, then reined in his horse next to the wagon. Looking down at her hand, he asked, "How's your hand?"

Guinevere smiled. "I'll live. I promise you." she watched him for a moment. "Is there nothing about my land that appeals to your heart? Your own father married a Briton. Even he must have found something to his liking." Arthur just stared at her, then spurred his horse on, leaving the wagon behind.

Iraina watched the interaction between the two with a knowing smile. Guinevere obviously had her sights on Arthur, and it looked as though Arthur wouldn't be able to resit her charm. It was a smart move on Guinevere's behalf though, making him think about who he really wanted to pledge his allegiance too. All they needed now is something to push him over the edge. Though what that was, Iraina couldn't tell.

She sighed, and then shivered in the cold. They had been traveling for hours already. They had not stopped for lunch. Instead, rations of stale bread had been passed around. Wrapped up in her thoughts, Iraina didn't notice as she fell farther and farther behind. A deep rut in the road escaped her notice. She slipped in the icy groove, and lost her balance, landing painfully on her hands and knees. She groaned, and tried to get back up. Pain flared through her legs and up her side. Iraina growled in frustration. Not only was she cold and now wet, but now her legs wouldn't work, she was tired and hungry, and her hand which had only recently been reset, was complaining loudly about had having to catch her when she fell.

A shadow fell across her face, and she looked up to find Lancelot staring down at her, with another knight behind him. He was a large man, on top of a large horse.

"Are you alright?" Lancelot asked, concern lacing his voice. A flash of annoyance crossed Iraina's face.

"Do I look alright to you?" she snapped. The other knight threw back his head and laughed. He leaned over and slapped Lancelot on the back.

"Just like my Vanora. I suspect that was the wrong thing to say Lancelot." he chuckled. Lancelot shrugged him off, rolling his eyes. "Oh be quiet Bors." Bors just laughed some more.

Iraina glared at the two, casually ignoring the fact that since she was the one who needed help, she should be a little nicer. Dismounting, Lancelot came over to where Iraina had fallen. He knelled next to her.

"I can help you, you know. But it won't work with you biting my head off all the time." Closing her eyes, Iraina sighed, and reeled in her temper and frustration.

"I am sorry." she apologized. Opening one eye she glanced at him. "Will you help me stand now?" she asked meekly.

Lancelot chuckled and nodded. Grabbing her at the elbow, he helped her stand. When she was standing, she was forced to lean heavily on his arm to keep from falling. "I feel so weak." she said softly. It feels unnatural." Lancelot led her over to his horse. "You have been walking all day when you should have been resting. Come, ride with me, and you may rest." With that, he grabbed her around her hips and lifted her as if she weighed nothing, into the saddle. He then mounted up behind her and slipped his arms around her waist. Leaning forward, he took the reins and spoke into her ear.

"Sleep. You need the rest. I will not let you fall."

Believing him, Iraina closed her eyes and fell into an exhausted sleep.

**Well... that was the end of that chapter. I'm sorry if you think it's all a little slow, but the pace should pick up with in the next two chapters. **

**Now, finally, I have time to do the reviewer responses! Yay! Think of it as a late Christmas gift.**

**Since I didn't do reviewer responses in the last chapter, I am going to do both chapter's reviews here. Starting with chapter four.**

**Chapter four reviews.**

**Myri87: Thanks for the review! And for the advice! Hope you like the last two chapters!**

**Cheifhow: thanks! I liked the name two. Now if only i can get him to play fetch...lol Thanks for the reviews!**

**HGandHrforever: cool name... Thanks for the review! No cliffies in the last two chapters, but i think a few more will sneak their way into the next few chapters!**

**KnightoftheRoundTable: Thanks for the awesome review! I'm glad that you think I'm doing a good job at it. Yeah, now that I think about it, Jacques is the name of the crab thingy in Finding Nemo...hm... didn't realize that before...**

**BillieLiv: Thanks for the great review!**

**SlythsRule:Thanks!**

**G.emini S.hadow: Wow... thanks for the wonderful review. I totally agree with you on the whole messed up crazy schedule thing. I now have a job, and that has taken away even more time from my free time. But oh well. You are sooooo lucky to have ridden horses for 11 years. Where I live, there is no room for horses, and we cant afford one anyway. Oh well, I have to settle with grooming my friends horse whenever I go over to her barn. Anyway, I'm glad that you like my story, and don't think that it's boring! Thanks again for the review!**

**Katemarry77: thanks! I'm glad that you like it!**

**Ok, now for the chapter five reviews...**

**Pia Rose: Thanks for the advice. Actually, she is going to have a few conversations with the other knights. **

**Devonshirelass: I'm glad that you liked it! Gawain will be in it, but he won't be a major major person. I'm thinking about writing a Gawain fic soon, though, so stay tuned!**

**A.K. Anonymous: Thanks, glad that you're proud of me! Lol. Personally, I didn't like the directors cut. They took out the 'baby's arm holding an apple' scene, and the 'if it's not raining it's snowing, and if not snowing it's foggy! And that's the summer' scene. Then after that, they added a lot more blood and gore to it. It's still a great movie, but I prefer the theatrical version to the directors cut. But that's just me. I like how you described the interaction as human, that's kinda what I was aiming for, and for you to have picked up on it is awesome! Hope you had a happy whatever!**

**Canadian Coco Chick: Thanks!**

**Awreel: Thanks! I'm glad that you liked it!**

**Mollziki: Glad that you liked it! Keep reading!**

**Jemiul: Tis okay that you didn't review! I just like seeing what other people think about my fic!**

**Sparrow Savvy: I'm sorry! hands you box of tissues Not all endings are sad! Besides, this one is only getting started! I hope i didn't make you wait too long! Update soon! Wait.... that's your line...well, here's your update! I hope you liked it! And now that i have the movie, my inspiration is up again, and you should be getting another update within this week!**

**Well, that's all for now, **

**Next Chapter. Conversations with Guinevere and Galahad. (and maybe a little Gawain if you beg) :-P**

**Elvenstar5**


	7. We're not too different

The caravan was just stopping when Iraina woke next. She was disoriented, and when she felt an arm around her waist, she reacted instinctively. Lashing out with her right arm, she jammed her elbow into whomever was behind her. A loud curse word finally brought Iraina fully awake, and the memories of riding with the knight, Lancelot, came crashing down on her. She swiveled in her seat to turn around to look at the knight. He had let go of the reins to bring his hand up to his face. His nose was bleeding slightly, and it looked as though she had slightly bruised his cheek. But, she noticed that she had kept his arm around her waist, keeping her from falling off of the horse.

Immediately, Iraina put a hand to her face, and slowly tuned forward in the saddle.

"Dammit." she cursed quietly.

Grabbing the horse's reins, she pulled the horse to a stop, then as quickly as she could, dismounted. She lowered her eyes to the ground, slightly ashamed of what she had done. The sounds of Lancelot dismounting reached her ears, and Iraina looked up in shame.

"I'm sorry." she apologized softly.

Lancelot smiled slightly around his bloody nose. "Don't worry about it." His voice sounded strange as he pinched his nose, trying to stop the bleeding. Iraina nodded, smiled apologetically, then turned and walked away into the wagon.

When she entered the wagon, she realized that Katherine and Loren both had left the wagon, along with the boy Lucan. Coming quietly into the wagon, Iraina saw Guinevere resting comfortably against the side of the wagon. She looked really happy.

"What has you looking like the world suddenly fell down at your feet?" Iraina asked pointedly. Guinevere just smiled.

"Marius's wife has offered to help us bathe. We can finally be clean!" Iraina laughed at her enthusiasm, but could only agree with her. She felt grungy, and didn't like the itchiness that dried blood and dirt brought to her scalp and skin.

"That is wonderful! When and where! I call it first!" Guinevere just laughed at her. With her hand, she pointed over to the next wagon, and Iraina was off in a flash.

Climbing up into the other wagon, Iraina was met with the woman who had probably saved her life by bringing her food and water during her time in Marius' dungeons. Looking around the wagon, Iraina noticed it was just one of the traveling wagons, with space cleared so that there would be space to put a basin of water. Narrowly, she eyed the flimsy curtain that was supposed to give them some privacy. But now that she looked at it, she became more and more unsure of it's usefulness. The thing was practically see through!

The woman smiled slightly, and motioned for Iraina to get out of the rags she wore as clothing, and move into the basin full of hot water. Iraina moved slowly into the water, and sighed as the warm liquid touched her skin, soothing the aching muscles in her back and legs.

Iraina sighed in contentment as Fulicina drew a water filled sponge over her back, wiping away some of the evidence of her time spent in a dungeon. Suddenly, she felt eyes on her. Slowly, she moved her hair away from her back, turned her head, and looked to the side. Out of the thin see-through material, and saw Lancelot staring at her. He looked up and caught her gaze. Immediately he dropped his gaze to the ground, slightly embarrassed to have been caught. But then, his eyes flickered upward again, as if he couldn't help himself. Then, after meeting her eyes for a second time, turned away, and walked down the hill, out of sight.

Iraina looked back down at the wagon floor, her heart hammering wildly in her chest. Shivers were running up and down her spine, making her flinch every time Fulicina brought the sponge to her back.

"Am I hurting you?" Fulicina's concerned voice brought the woad woman out of her shock. Quickly she shook her head, easily reassuring the roman woman of her concerns

"No, my back is nearly healed. Please, continue." Fulicina nodded and went back to bathing Iraina. Finally, she finished her work, and handed Iraina a towel to dry herself off with. Next, she handed her a beautiful, but simple dark green dress, that obviously had been one of Fulicina's. Quickly Iraina pulled it over her head, and allowed Marius' wife to lace up the back of it. Then she hurried outside, and made her way over to where Guinevere was waiting. Glancing at the woad princess, Iraina smiled.

"Your turn." she said, and then slipped out into the night. Moving in the direction she had seen Lancelot go, Iraina passed a fire with two of the knights sitting around it. Seeing their forlorn looks, she paused, watching them from a distance. One of the knights looked up and noticed her standing there. He gestured for her to join them. Iraina glanced once more in the direction of Lancelot, then moved over to the fire, taking a seat on a log close to the welcoming warmth of the flames.

The blonde haired knight next to her held out his hand to her. Iraina looked at it confused, not knowing what he wanted her to do.

"Gawain."he said, "My name is Gawain." Understanding came to Iraina. She quickly took his hand and shook it.

"Iraina." Gawain let go of her hand, and the dark haired knight next to him stuck his own out.

"And mine is Galahad." the man paused for a moment. "Do you hate Rome?" he asked, his eyes boring into hers. Iraina nodded furiously. "Then you're a friend of mine." Gawain laughed and slapped him on the back. The woad woman smiled as she took her hand back, and looked down at her lap.

A silence fell between the three, until all of a sudden Galahad angrily threw the stick he had been absently prodding the fire with into the flames. Iraina jumped slightly in surprise. She was startled by the coldness in the young knights next words.

"Nothing. It has all been for nothing." Galahad stated and then pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. Gawain sighed heavily and placed a hand on his shoulder, offering him some comfort. Iraina's brow furrowed in confusion.

"What has been for nothing?" she asked curiously. The knight's head snapped up.

"Everything! Rome is pulling out of Briton, and just leaving it to the Saxons. I just spent the last ten years of my life fighting for a land that is not mine, fighting people I have no wish to kill! And every year, knights fell, and died! And now, just as our term is finished, they come and tell us that the Saxons are coming, and that we have just spent these years fighting for no reason! I have lost friends to this land, and now..." he trailed off, his eyes glistening dangerously on the edge of tears.

"and now the Saxons are coming to destroy everything that you have fought to protect." Iraina finished for him. He glanced at her sharply, then laughed. A short humorless bark that was as cold as the night around them.

"I forgot that you are a woad. We're not too different, you and I. You are fighting to get your country back, away from Rome, for freedom. And I am fighting for Rome, to go back to my country, for my own freedom." He fell silent and went back to staring into the flames.

Iraina watched him for a moment. Sympathy ran through her, and she realized that she had no real quarell with him, nor any of the other knights. They were just like her. Taking orders from someone in order to have their freedom. Standing, she nodded to the two knights, then took her leave. She had much to think about.

Merlin was waiting, and now Iraina could see what was going though her leader's mind. It all hanged on Arthur...

**Ewww... I really didn't like this chapter, but it had to be written...oh well, tell me what you think.**

**Anyway, after the last chapter I put up, I was astounded by the amount of reviews that I had received! :wipes tear away: Thanks you guys! **

**Now, reviewer responses...**

**katemarry77: **I put Gawain in it. But, unfortunately, not a lot of him. I'll put him in more in later chapters, and possibly write another fic, about Gawain, but I'm not sure yet. Glad that you liked the chapter!

**Devonshirelass: **You might have to wait a while yet. School starts tomorrow...blerg...so I won't have a lot of time to write. But oh well, I'll try my best. I totally agree with you on the thing about men with long hair. To bad the style now is the shaggy look. I don't like it much, it needs to be longer. Lol I'm glad that you like Iraina. It was kinda hard not to make her too weak, nor too mary sueish... Thanks for the review, hope you liked this chapter too!

**Myri78: **Glad that you like it! Hope you liked this chapter too! Thanks for the review!

**SparrowSavvy: lol. **You actually squealed? hm... didn't think that I was that good of a writer... anyway, Thanks for the long review, they're always the fun ones to read. Hope you liked this chapter better than I did! In the directors cut, I think I like the part where Lancelot is sitting by the tree, and Guinevere comes up and asks him about his home, and he says, "We sacrifice goats, drink their blood, dance naked around fires." I loved that line. But then, I think it gets better when he goes on and says later, "I've killed too many sons, what right to I have to my own." and then Guinevere says "No family, no religion, do you believe in anything?" "I would have left you and the boy there to die." To me, that was great, it should a whole new side to Lancelot, that we don't see. It was great.

**Raz42492: **Okay, I updated! Hope you liked this chapter, sorry, but not a lot of Lancelot in this one, but he's coming up again soon!

**Awreel: **sorry, but another short one! Hoped you liked it! And thanks for the review!

**AngelYue: **yay for Lancelot! Thanks for the review!

**A.K. Anonymous: **Yay for extra minutes of knights, I just didn't like how they took out the humor and added more blood. :watches as a splurt of blood flies across the screen: eh, but I now have both versions! Yay! Thanks for the review!

**Arien: **That's cool. That means I'm doing my job right! And as for Lancelot, you'll just have to wait and see!

**Jemiul:** Glad that you liked it! I too think that they will become close! Lol. Sorry, not much action in this chapter, but it's coming up soon! The showdown on the ice.

**Calliope Foster: Yay! **Glad you liked it!

**CoCo: **here's your update!

**TwistofShadows: **Wow! That's a great compliment! And just to let you know, there is no such thing as seeing King Arthur too many times. I saw five times in the theater with my friend, and we're proud of it! Mmm... sexy knights... lol. Thanks for the review!

**Keag: **Thanks Keag!

**ChildLikeEmpress:** Thanks for the review! I don't know what's going to happen with Lancelot! Or at least, I'm not saying...better keep tissues with you at all times!

**Urhallucinating: **thanks for the review! Hope you liked this chapter!

**Lunawolf: **Thanks for the review! Here's another chapter! I hope you liked it! Another one should be up soon!

**I have a quick question, what do you think about me putting a song in later in the story? It will be a song from this decade ( I think, i'm not sure) or, do you think I should write one? The song I'm thinking about is, I think, perfect for a certin part of the story, but I wanted to ask you all before I decide.**

**So yeah, tell me!**

**Now click the little blue button! Review Please!**


	8. What lay hidden

After leaving the two knights, Iraina walked away from the camp, until thered andyellowsof Galahad's fire were justpinpricks of light in the distance. She stopped and stood silently in the night. The cold air around Iraina suddenly stilled, and she turned around sharply to see Merlin standing close behind her. Immediately she dropped into a low bow, her head nearly touching the ground.

"Rise child" he intoned her, "there is no need for that." Merlin's voice was rough, but kind. The woad rose swiftly to her feet, and faced the leader of the woads. Merlin smiled slightly at her, his eyes taking in the barely noticeable bruises on her face. "You are well?" he asked. Iraina nodded.

"The knight's rescued Guinevere and I from the dungeons of Marius Onarious. They have cared for our wounds and have not treated us ill." she paused for a moment, concern etched across her features. "My father?" she asked, slightly worried for his well being, as Guinevere had said that he was supposed to be present with Merlin. The woad leader nodded at her.

"The reason he is not here is my fault. I needed him to start organizing our people for battle against the Saxons. He sends his love, and gives you his blessing for a safe journey back." Smiling, Iraina allowed herself a small amount of relief, before getting back to the task at hand.

"I assume that you are here to meet with Arthur?" she asked, guessing his reasons for being here. Merlin nodded.

"I will meet with Arthur tonight. There is not much time. Tell Guinevere to bring him to me. I will be in the clearing by the river." Iraina nodded, bowed her head to her leader, then slipped quietly back into the night. As she was making her way back to the camp, she passed a shape leaning against a tree. Pausing for a moment, Iraina stared, then realized that it was Lancelot's still form gazing over the water of the river. Hesitating, Iraina thought about stopping to talk to the knight, but then decided that Merlin's order was more important at the moment. She moved on, passing behind him silently, leaving him to his thoughts.

Coming up on the wagon, the woad climbed in, and nodded to Guinevere. "I just met Merlin in the woods." she whispered, trying not to be overheard. "He told me that you are to bring Arthur to him now, by the river." Guinevere nodded. The woad princess was silent for a moment while a plan formed in her mind. Their eyes met for a moment, and then Guinevere left the wagon, with Iraina following close behind. Once out of the wagon, the two friends gripped each other's forearms, then Guinevere walked away from her, towards where Arthur lay sleeping, leaving Iraina alone in the dark.

Turning back to where she had last seen Lancelot, Iraina made her way towards the river. She walked slowly in front of the knight, stopping close to him. Tilting her head to the side, she pondered the man, then decided to speak.

"What was it like, your home?"

Lancelot's head snapped up, as if surprised to see her there in front of him. Then he looked away, a small grin spreading across his features.

"We sacrificed goats, drank their blood. Danced naked around fires." He chuckled, laughing at his own words. Looking back up at Iraina, he saw that she was truly interested. He paused growing solemn, his eyes taking a far away look, and rose to his feet.

"What I do remember, home... Oceans of grass. From horizon to horizon, further than you could ride. The sky, bigger than you could imagine. No boundaries."

Iraina cocked her head. "Some people would call that freedom. That's what we fight for. Our land, our people. The right to choose our own destiny. So you see Lancelot, we are much alike, you and I." She stopped, and moved closer to him, staring at him intently. "And when you return home, will you take a wife, have sons?"

Lancelot sighed and glanced at the ground before bringing his eyes back up to meet hers. "I've killed too many sons. What right to I have to my own?"

The woad stared sadly at him, "No family, no religion. Do you believe in anything at all?" The curly haired knight sighed dejectedly. His eyes took on a cold edge, the warmth completely disappearing. He stared at her.

"I would have left Guinevere and the boy there to die. And if it hadn't been for Arthur asking for someone to look for the woad woman that Guinevere had mentioned, I never would have gone back." He shook his head, gave one last glance at Iraina, then left, leaving Iraina staring after him in the dark.

After he had disappeared from her sight, Iraina let out the breath that she didn't know she had been holding. This darker side of Lancelot disturbed her, what she had seen of him had been the cocky charming man that tales had told about him. But now, after her conversation with him, she realized that this man was full of deeper secrets and riddles. She had half a mind to follow him, but stopped when she saw Arthur walking away from the camp, his sword held loosely at his side. She surmised that Guinevere had done what Merlin had asked, and now Arthur was pondering everything that had been told to him.

The sound of a twig cracking in the woods next to her made her swing her head around and stare intently into the dark. Soon, a tall, slim figure stepped out. Iraina smiled at the figure.

"How did it go?" she asked Guinevere. The smile Guinevere gave her in return was small.

"It went." she replied tiredly.

Iraina's brow furrowed. "What do you mean, 'it went'?"

"Arthur thought that I had betrayed him."

Iraina's eyebrows rose into her forehead. "Because of Merlin?"

Guinevere nodded. "Arthur was furious. Apparently, when he was young, the woads attacked his village and they killed his mother. My father was in charge of the attack. That was how Arthur got his sword. He pulled it out of his father's grave, with every intention of killing my father. But, my father spoke with him, and possibly convinced him to stay. We can only hope it worked." She paused and looked sadly at Iraina. "Otherwise, Britain is no more."

The sevearity of the entire situation came crashing down on Iraina in that moment. If they had failed to convince Arthur to remain, then they were doomed by the coming Saxons. It was hard to imagaine. She had been fighting for her country's freedom for almost all of her life, and now, when Rome was finally pulling out, the Saxon had come. Just as their freedom was handed to them, they were threatened again by people even more brutal. If the Saxon went undefeated, then there would be no one left alive.

Together, Iraina and Guinevere made their way silently back into the wagon, each immersed with their own thoughts. Determined to wake at dawn, Iraina settled down into a light sleep.

**I know, I know, short and now action, but i promise there will be action and a longer chapter with in a few days. No more than a week. And yes, i do know that Iraina stole Guinevere's lines from the director's cut, but i wanted her to have them**

**I don't have time for reviewer responses right now, because i am hard pressed for time. I only have enough time to finish typing it and updating it.**

**Please review!**

**If you do, you get a knight of your choice strapped onto a horse, and ridden to where ever you please.**

**Elvenstar5**


	9. Love under a full moon

The sounds of someone moving outside the wagon roused Iraina from her slumber. As consciousness slowly came back to her, she sleepily realized that Guinevere was no longer in the wagon. She dimly wondered where the other woad was, but her thoughts were interrupted when gruff hands reached through the deerskin flap and grabbed at her. Iraina gave a startles cry as she as roughly pulled out of the wagon. Before she could retaliate, her hands were bound, and a knife was stuck under her chin.

When she felt the cold metal slide across her skin, Iraina immediately stilled her movements. Her captor harshly grabbed her shoulders and spun her around, keeping the knife at her throat. Iraina's eyes narrowed as she was Maruis step out in front of her. As her initial panic began to subside somewhat, it gave gave way to fear and anger. This man had already had her tortured, and almost killed, and now he wanted more. At that thought, Iraina was forced to suppress a shudder. She was snapped back to the present when Marius spoke.

"Not so fearsome now, are you?" he sneered. "And now that we have you, and soon the boy, the knights will surrender so that you won't be harmed." His eyes gleamed with a strange light. "Not that that will do any good for you."

The woad's mind went into overdrive at his words. This crazy roman man wanted to take over the caravan, and then he wanted to... She stopped, not even wanting to think about what he was going to do to her.

A loud roar made her swing her head in the direction that it had come from, completely forgetting the knife at her throat. She gasped as she felt the sharp edge cut into her neck, starting a trickle of blood running down her neck. The arm around her shoulders tightened threateningly, warning her not to move anymore. She watched in horror as Dagonet was attacked by three guards. But it seemed like he was holding his own. The knight reached down and pulled a dagger out of its sheath in his boot, when Marius' voice stopped him.

"I have the boy!"

Iraina watched horrified as Marius held a knife to the little boy, Lucan's, throat. A deep blazing trail of anger started to rise from the pit of her stomach. It was one thing to threaten a woman warrior, but to hold an innocent little boy at knife point was an atrocity.

Making decision, Iraina threw back her head and slammed it into the face of the man behind her. Her captor gave a strangled cry and dropped the knife in his surprise. Immediately Iraina dropped to the ground and swung her legs in an arc underneath the man's legs, wiping them out from underneath him. She she spun, she grabbed the fallen knife and rose to her feet.

The Roman was just about to get to his feet when Iraina stepped forward and placed her foot on his chest, forcing him to stay on the ground. The man glared at her, clearly angered, and made to get back up. The dagger flashed in Iraina's hand, causing the man to still his movement, in fear for his life. Keeping her attention divided between the man she was guarding, and what was going on with Marius, Iraina watched as the atmosphere charged with tension around them. The villagers had been woken by the sounds of fighting, and were now crowding around, trying to see what was going on. One young man, Ganis, she believed his name was, looked ready to jump in the middle of it and start fighting himself. Inwardly Iraina hoped he didn't, for he would surely get himself killed. Suddenly, to her surprise, Fulicania launched herself at Marius, trying to stop him from hurting the little boy. Marius threw his wife to the ground, sneering at her as she fell. He looked back up and motioned to his guards.

""Kill him! Kill him now!" The roman man opened his mouth to issue another order, but was stopped by the arrow that had found its way into his chest. He stared at the arrow in disbelief, his mouth opening and closing like a fish, then fell backwards, his life leaving his body. The boy wriggled out of his grasp and raced over to where Dagonet was standing.

The tall knight pushed Lucan to the ground. "Down!" he roared, and grabbed his broadsword. At that moment, Bors came riding in, swinging his ax.

"Artourious!" he roared.

Guinevere shot another arrow at the soldier's feet, silently warning them not to move any further. Arthur moved forward, and raised his sword at the leader of the roman soldiers.

"You have a choice. You help, or you die." There was a moment of tense silence, before the leader dropped his sword in the snow.

"Put down your weapons." he told them. When no one moved, he yelled at them. "Do it now!" Dagonet let out another war cry, and that seemed to decide them. One by one, they dropped their weapons, giving in to Arthur. Nodding to Jols, Arthur watched as the man picked up the fallen swords. Then they walked away from them, shooing the people away, telling them to make ready to leave.

Seeing that everything was under control now, Iraina warily let the man under her foot up. He glared at her before stalking off to join his companions. Slowly, she lowered the dagger to her side. Someone tapped on her shoulder, and she spun around, tensing for another fight. When she saw who it was, however, she relaxed. Lancelot was standing behind her looking concerned.

"Are you alright?" He asked. Iraina nodded, then winced as the action made the cut on her neck stretch painfully. Lancelot's eyes hardened as he took in the cut along her neck. Iraina moved to cover it with her hand when the knight grabbed her arm, stopping her.

With his other hand, he gently grabbed her chin and forced her to look up.

"It's not too bad." He said softly. "But if we don't clean it, it's probably going to get infected. He released her then and stepped back. "Come, let us go find Dagonet. He will help you." Dagonet was checking over Lucan. Iraina followed Lancelot quietly, her senses still on high alert, ready for another attack. When they reached the tall knight, he stood, looking between the two. He glanced at Lancelot, who gestured to Iraina. As the giant man's gaze switched to her, Iraina was struck by how different they all were. Even though they had been fighting her people for over fifteen years, they were willing to help her.

"Are you injured anywhere besides your neck?" Dagonet asked in his deep voice. Iraina shook her head.

"I'm a little bruised, but that's all." The knight nodded, then bent down to pick up a roll of bandages. Quickly he cleaned the cut, then bandaged it. Moving her had from side to side, Iraina tested her mobility in the bandaging. Her neck was sore, but other than that, she was able to move freely enough.

"Thank you." she said smiling.

"Leave that on for a few days. Take it off a few times though to let air to it." Again Iraina nodded, then she took her leave.

Suddenly a loud trumpeting of a horse caught her attention. She turned towards the noise and saw the knights trying to calm a pitch black horse with a single star on his head. Iraina gasped in shock as she recognized the horse, and sprinted to where they were trying to control the creature. Quickly she pushed her way through the crowd, and past the large knight, Bors. She ignored their warnings to stay away from the animal and walked right up to the horse and grabbed his head. Swiftly she pulled the great horse's head down, stilling his wild bucking. Placing her hand on the creature's muzzle, she allowed the horse to smell her hand. At first the horse tried to pull away, snorting, his eyes rolling. But soon, Iraina spoke, soothing him.

"Shhhh... You are alright now Wings, you are safe. There's no need to throw yourself into a fit." The crowd watched amazed as the huge stallion calmed and stilled, standing patiently as though there was nothing wrong. Gawain pushed his way forward, a look of amazement etched on his face.

"Iraina?" he asked stunned, "How did you do that?" The woad woman grinned.

"He's mine." then her smile faltered however, as she realized something. "I don't know how he got here though." As she stared thoughtfully at the horse, absently stroking his head, she realized with a start that he was saddled. Moving quickly, around to the other side of him, she saw that her sword and bow where also attached to the horse. There were also a quiver full of arrows and a saddle bag. Stepping up to the horse, she relived him of his burdan, giving him a gentle pat. Setting the bag on the ground, she opened it and started unloading everything inside it.

Inside, she found all of her weapons, seven throwing knives, and three holsters for the hidden ones that she could hide on her body, a small ax, and two small curved swords that attached to her back. Digging further, she found a pair of leather pants and a long sleeved tunic. Then, at the bottom of the pack, there was a rolled up piece of parchment. Iraina grabbed it and unfurled the paper. She smiled slightly when she recognized her father's clean handwriting.

_Iraina,_

_I am sorry to hear about your captivity. But I know that you wouldn't want my pity, so I won't give you any. I sent the messenger on Dark Wings. I thought you might need him. Do not give up. Be wary, I will see you before the battle._

_Your Father_

When she had finished reading her father's letter, she quickly repacked her weapons, and swung herself int the saddle. Looking down at the knights from atop Wings, she raised an eyebrow at them.

"Are you just going to stand there all day starring at me, or are we going to continue running away from dirty smelly men who want to kill us all?" she asked as if it were the most normal thing in the world to be running for their lives.

At her words, the knights seemed to snap out of their daze and went into action. Soon they had everyone ready to go, and the caravan started moving again. Now that she was on her horse and able to think clearly, she was aware at their painfully slow pace through the mountains. Looking ahead, Iraina watched as Arthur sent Tristan off. Most likely to scout. Even though she did not know the man well, and he didn't talk much, Iraina had decided that she liked him. The way he painstakingly took care of his horse and hawk even before he allowed himself any comfort. She also knew that the man preferred scouting, and being away from all the people. She could tell by the way he always stood stiffly in the presence of anyone other than his fellow knights.

Because she didn't have a bridle, Iraina pushed her right leg against Wing's side, making him turn left, and kicked him into a smooth canter, moving up to the front of the caravan, until she came to the wagon holding Guinevere. Dismounting Wings, she made sure the horse was following, then climbed into the wagon, taking the clothes her father had sent her with her. They were all pushed for space, because Katherine and Loren were asleep on the floor, but she was able to change out of the dress she was wearing, and into the new clothes without waking the pair. Once she was out of the dress, Iraina sighed in contentment. She had never really liked dresses. They always got in the way of riding and fighting. Guinevere laughed quietly at her, then turned around to stare at Arthur. It was Iraina's turn to grin. Emotions were already flying around the two.

Taking her leave, she climbed back out of the wagon, and walked over to where Dark Wings was following. Quickly, she pulled herself up onto his back, and kicked him up to the front of the train.

They had been traveling for about an hour when the sound of hoof beats alerted Iraina to the fact that someone was coming up behind her. Twisting in the saddle, Iraina looked over her shoulder to see that Gawain was riding up next to her on his horse. He pulled up along side her and for a few minutes they rode in silence. Soon, however, Gawain spoke up.

"How is it that you can control your horse without a bridle?" he asked curiously. Iraina glanced down a her horse, then back up at the blonde haired knight.

"At first I used a bridle on him, then one day, my father lent him out to someone who did not know what they were doing. The had him for a week, and the abuse completely ruined his mouth. So, I no longer use a bridle, and have taught him to go at the touch of his sides. I will however, sometimes use a halter when there will be a battle for more control over him, but usually I only use a saddle."

Gawain nodded thoughtfully. "What's his name?"

"Dark Wings, but I call him wings for short. When I first saw him, he was running across the fields, and I thought that if he had wings, he would have been able to fly." Silence lapsed between them again, and for a while, the only sounds were of the horse's hooves crunching softly in the snow, and the wind whistling around them.

"What will you do when you get back to the wall?" Iraina asked, breaking the silence. "Will you go home to Sarmatia? Turn your back to the land that you have lived in for over fifteen years?" Gawain was silent for a moment, before speaking, his words laced with decision.

"I will. I will go back to Sarmatia. Marry a beautiful Sarmation woman, and have a family. And as for turning my back to the land, it never was my land. I have just been forced to fight the people, and forced to watch as those I love as brothers are killed and then buried in the earth. I have nothing here."

Iraina watched him carefully. It sounded as though he wasn't quite sure that that was what he was going to do. But she didn't push the issue. All the knights would have to make their decision soon. And their decision would most likely decide the fate of all Britannia. If they left, her people would probably lose the battle, and all be killed, and the Saxons would kill everyone, and destroy everything. So wrapped up in her thoughts she didn't notice Gawain starring at her with a mischievous look on his face.

Gawain watched the woad woman on his right. She was beautiful, that much he knew just by looking at her. Her red brown hair was pulled back, but by looking at it, you could tell that it was wavy. Her soft face with high cheekbones brought out the beauty of her eyes, which were a brilliant shade of green. She was uncommonly tall for a woman, and her build was slim, but it betrayed the great strength in her. There was also a small tattoo in the shape of a rain drop on her left cheek, underneath her eye. It was almost like Tristan's, only hers was a rain drop, and his was a sword.

Watching her earlier, he could tell that she may feel something for Lancelot. And now, because her thoughts were elsewhere, he decided to find out.

"So," he stated casually, as if nothing was wrong, "Do you find Lancelot so attractive that you want to whisk him away to the forest and make love with him under the full moon?" After he said that he was forced to clamp his mouth shut in order to stop himself from laughing.

Iraina nodded absently, and answered, her mind clearly elsewhere. "Mmmm.Yes, that would be nice."

Gawain was shaking with silent hysterics, and he could barley contain himself. After a moment, an odd expression passed over Iraina's face; her eyes widened and she whipped her head around to stare at him as she processed what had just been said.

"What?!" Gawian finally allowed his mirth out, and he laughed heartily at her. Turning his horse he kicked it into a canter and quickly moved away from her. As one last thought came to him, he turned in the saddle and threw over his shoulder.

"Thank you for that! I am sure Lancelot will love to know it as well!"

A look of disbelief came over Iraina's face as she watched the blonde knight disappear.

"No! Wait! I didn't mean..." Iraina stopped, it was useless. Now she would just have to find some way to get back at the man. She grinned, revenge was always sweet.

**Yay for me!!! I got it up!!! I promise I will answer the reviewer responses next time though, right now I am heading out the door to go see The Phantom of the Opera! Yay for me!!!**

**And for all those who reviewed, go outside right now, and see your knight in shining armor on his horse waiting to whisk you away for the day!!!! lol.**

**Elvenstar5**


	10. Behind Enemy Lines

Iraina rode the rest of the way in silence, furiously contemplating ways to exact her revenge on Gawain. So far, none of the ones she had come up with matched what she wanted done to him. "If only I knew what he was most afraid of. Then maybe I might be able to figure this out. But knowing that he's a knight, he's probably not afraid of anything." Dark Wings under her snorted, as if disagreeing with her. Iraina laughed. "I hope you're right Wings, otherwise, I may never get this right."

As they rode through a canyon, Iraina gazed up at the huge walls of snow, towering over the caravan. As her eyes swept over the tall walls, a terrible sense of foreboding came over her. Her stomach clenched and it felt as though someone had tied rocks to her feet, so strong of the feeling of not wanting to go into the canyon. Deep inside her, she knew something was going to happen.

Suddenly, Arthur galloped by, his horse kicking up snow as they raced past her. Soon, the thundering of the rest of the knights' horses hooves were heard as the rest of the Sarmations galloped by, following their commander. Making a quick decision, Iraina kicked her heels into Wings, she pushed him into a canter; following the knights at a slower rate.

Soon, she came upon the nights, all stopped and looking out across... Iraina gasped. There was a large frozen over lake in their path. Looking around, she saw that there was no other way, and that they must cross the ice in order to continue on without backtracking their path and running into the Saxons on their way. Besides, the Saxons were already almost upon them. For the past hour the drums had been getting steadily louder and louder, until Iraina feared that if they didn't speed up, they would catch them within the hour.

She heard Arthur turn to one of the knights and tell him to tell the villagers to get out of the wagons and spread out. Quickly, Iraina dismounted and grabbed Wings' head gently, signaling him to follow her. Iraina followed the knights out onto the ice, flinching every time that it creaked and groaned beneath them. The drums grew louder and louder.

Iraina kept an eye on Arthur at the head of the column, and one eye on the ice beneath her feet. She stopped as the frozen water cracked and groaned under her feet.

"Knights?" Arthur's voice floated back to her. He had stopped and had turned his horse around, looking at the knights. Bors was the first to answer the roman commander.

"Well, I'm tired of runnin', and these Saxons are so close behind my ass is hurtin'."

"I never liked looking over my shoulder anyway." Commented the quiet Tristan. Iraina had to agree with the fierce looking man. She had never liked running away, and always having to glance behind her.

"We can finally put an end to this racket." Iraina had to agree with the blonde haired knight on that, the drums had been slowly driving her insane.

She almost rolled her eyes when she heard Galahad's response. "We'll finally get a look at the bastards."

"Here. Now." Those words, spoken with such conviction were what decided Iraina. Looking around, she found a young man, and handed DarkWings over to him, making him promise to take care of the large war horse. Grabbing the saddle bags off of his back, Iraina made her way to where Arthur was standing, talking to Jols. She came upon the two as Jols nodded and turned to one of the villagers.

"You. Take the horses." Iraina watched as the knights readied their weapons, and prepared themselves for battle. Guinevere walked past her, touching her shoulder briefly before going up to Arthur, where he was talking to a village boy, Ganis.

"Nine." the woad princess interrupted. "You could use two more bows." Arthur could only stare as the two woad women strode over and placed themselves in the line of knights.

Iraina stepped in between Lancelot and Gawain. Lancelot turned as she moved besides him and raised an eyebrow at her, and waggled them at her, a smirk lifting his lips. At that moment, Iraina knew that Gawain hadn't been joking, and had actually told the dark haired man what she had said. Scowling at him, she turned her glare on the blonde haired knight on her other side. And if looks could kill, Gawain would be dead, six times over.

Her glaring was interrupted by the pounding of the drums getting louder and louder. Iraina watched from across the ice as the Saxons came into view. For a fleeting moment, Iraina wondered if Galahad's words were thought out. They were rather ugly. She was snapped out of her thoughts as Lancelot spoke.

"You two look frightened. There's a large number of lonely men out there."

Iraina opened her mouth to retort, but Guinevere beat her to it.

"Don't worry. We won't let them rape you."

A snort escaped Iraina as the curly haired knight fought for a reply to that. He stopped though, and shifted his attention to the men across the lake. The line of warriors watched as a Saxon raised a bow and shot a single arrow, testing the distance. Iraina laughed bitterly as the arrow fell short of the line of knights and woads by a good fifty feet.

Arthur smirked, looking at the arrow as it slid to a stop. "I believe they are waiting for an invitation. Bors, Tristan." He nodded to each of the men.

"We're far out of range!"Guinevere protested. Arthur gave her a small smile and turned back towards the Saxon ranks. Iraina watched as Tristan and Bors both raised their bows into the air. She was shocked and awed to see that Tristan had placed four arrows on his bow string. The least she could manage was two.

The two knights pulled back and released the tension in the bows. Iraina followed the arrows as they flew in the air, and then landed in the midst of the Saxon lines, killing a few. This caused plenty of surprised anger among the Saxon troops. They bellowed their war cry and started to make their way hesitantly across the ice.

The nine fighters each raised their bows, aiming at the Saxons. Iraina pulled back along with the rest of them, and was about to release when Arthur's voice stopped her.

"Hold until I give the command." he ordered. The Saxons moved closer and closer. "Aim for the wings of the ranks. Make them cluster." The roman commander took aim,then released his arrow, followed by everyone else. Their arrows hit their marks, a number of Saxons falling to the ice.

The nine fighters continued firing their arrows into the Saxon ranks, but soon the leader became smart enough to figure out what was happening. The Saxons once again spread out into their formations, holding the lines steady. Inwardly, Iraina cursed. Now they had less of a chance breaking the ice under the Saxons. As the Saxons came closer and closer, it occurred to Iraina that the ice wasn't going to break. Just as she was about to voice this, Arthur got to it first.

"It's not going to break. Fall back! Prepare for combat!" The line of warriors dropped their bows to the ground and each picked up either a sword or an ax. Iraina desperately wished she had her double bladed staff, but that couldn't be helped at the moment, her father probably realized that a large staff wouldn't travel well in a saddle bag. For now, she had to deal with the long broadsword that Jols had picked out for her. Iraina glanced to her left and saw Dagonet standing uncertainly, shifting his weight back and forth on the ice.

Why would he be uncertain? The thought passed through Iraina's mind just as Dagonet threw down his monster of a sword and picked up the large ax from the pile in front of him. With a loud war cry, he ran out onto the ice, swinging the ax over his head. Iraina could only stare at the large man as he made his way to the center of the icy lake.

"Cover him!" Arthur shouted, bringing Iraina back into focus. She looked at the bow lying on the pile, and then quickly shook her head. Reaching around Lancelot, she picked up the shield that was laying on top of his pile, and ran out after Dagonet.

"Iraina!" Guinevere's distressed voice carried across the ice, but Iraina ignored it. Sliding on her knees to where the big man was hacking away at the ice, she pulled up the shield just in time to stop two arrows from sinking into her body.

"What- are you- doing out here?" Dagonet asked in between strokes.

"What does it look like I'm doing? Getting a drink! I'm saving your life you big oaf!"

"Why?"

Iraina resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Here they were on the brink of death, and he had so many questions. "Logic. You saved my life, Now I'm saving yours. We're square."

Two more arrows thunked into the shield, one going all the way through and piercing her arm. She winced at the sharp pain. "Hurry up and break the damn ice!" she yelled as more arrows flew around them. It seemed her words helped. With a final cry, Dagonet brought the ax down one last time, and was rewarded with a resounding CRACK! As the ice finally broke. A final arrow found it's way past the shield and landed in her leg. With a cry of pain, her leg collapsed, just as the ice underneath her gave way.

As she fell into the icy water, Iraina couldn't help but scream. Bad mistake. After she went under, she immediately inhaled a mouthful of water. Kicking towards the surface, Iraina pushed her head above the water, coughing and sputtering. One hand reached out and grabbed the slab of ice and she hung on with all of her strength. Slowly, she felt her hand slipping, and with a calm resolution, she realized that she was going to die. With water blurred eyes, she could see the ice cracking and splitting it's way towards the line of knights. Iraina could barely make out the form of Guinevere trying to come to her rescue. With the last of her energy, Iraina shook her head, making it clear that she didn't want her to come out onto the ice. Finally, accepting her death, Iraina let go.

Lancelot watched with horror as Iraina dropped her bow, and grabbed his shield and ran out onto the ice after Dagonet.

"Iraina!" a voice filled with terror screamed. It suddenly came to him that it was his voice that had screamed. The dark haired knight's heart clenched painfully as he watched the arrows fly through the air towards the vulnerable pair out on the ice. Raising his bow, he deftly shot any of the Saxons that came close enough to hit the pair. But his alone were not slowing down the Saxons. There were too many, and no matter how hard he tried, there was always one more to take his place. Helplessly, all he could do was hope that Dagonet was strong enough to break the ice quickly.


	11. Breath!

**Ok! Finally, after what, one- two- months? I have finally updated! I am terribly sorry for the long wait, but I hit sort of a rock bottom in my inspiration bucket... But, thanks to Cardeia, I have found it once more!**

**Note: These two chapters are dedicated to Cardeia, who with her advice, helped me start writing again after I hit a major writers block!**

The sight of Iraina plunging into the icy waters was one that almost made his heart stop. The Sarmation may have stopped to wonder at his heart's reaction, but his worry for the woad woman overcame his curiosity. He took a step to race out onto the ice after Arthur, but a hand on his arm halted him. Lancelot turned around with a snarl. He met Gawain's blue eyes.

"You can NOT go out there!" Gawain exclaimed. "Arthur is already out there, and we might lose him as it is!" Lancelot just glared at his brother in arms, and then viscously pulled his arm away.

Sprinting as fast as he could to the place where he had seen Iraina dissapear, Lancelot could only hope that she wouldn't sink. Hope flared in his chest when he saw her shoot out of the water to grab onto the ledge. But, she started to slip. Lancelot forced his legs to carry him faster. Sliding onto his knees, the knight reached her just as she went under a second time. Plunging his arm into the freezing waters, Lancelot felt around for her hand. His fingers brushed something hard, and he immediately grabbed onto it. Pulling with all his strength, Lancelot pulled Iraina out of the water. Pulling her into his arms, Lancelot swiftly made his way back to solid ground. Placing her on the ground, he looked up as everyone crowed around. Dagonet dropped to his knees and placed his ear on her chest.

"She's not breathing!" he cried. Pushing Iraina onto her back, the large knight put one hand ontop of the other and pressed down hard on the woman's chest. Looking up at Lancelot, he said, "When I say, plug her nose, and then breath into her mouth." with that, Dagonet pressed down five times swiftly, and the shouted, "Now!"

Lancelot swiftly plugged her nose and then lowered his mouth to hers and exhaled into her mouth. Dagonet waited a moment and then started again, pressing five more times, and then shouting, "Now!"

When nothing happened for the second time, Guinevere turned and buried her face into Arthur's chest trying to keep her sobs quiet.

Dagonet pressed down a final five times, and then told Lancelot to breath...

Lancelot lowered his face to hers, but was stopped when Iraina's eyes snapped open and she started coughing, and water sprayed out of her mouth. Lancelot immediately helped her turn over so that she was able to cough down.

Guinevere gave a shriek and immdeiately started berating Iraina.

"Don't you EVER do that to me again! Do you hear me?" Iraina took a shuddering breath and glanced up at her friend.

"Oh yeah... I hear you loud and clear, but could you keep it down? I have a major headache." With that she glanced up at Lancelot and promptly lost consciousness again.

**I know I know! VERY short chapter, but that is why I am uploading two at a time!**

_Elvenstar5_


	12. Freedom

When Iraina next opened her eyes, she was staring at the roof of the wagon, watching as the cloth curtains moved with the bouncing wagon. She tried sitting up, but found the task slightly more difficult with the amount of furs and cloaks laid on her. As she was watching the side of the wagon, the cloth was moved aside, and Guinevere poked her head in.

"You're awake!" she exclaimed. Iraina nodded and scouted over, patting the spot next to her, inviting Guinevere to join her in the wagon. The woad princess quickly hopped into the moving wagon, and immediately lunged over and hugged Iraina.

Iraina sat there, and awkwardly patted her friend on the back, not really sure where this burst of emotion was coming from. Guinevere pulled away with watery eyes. "I'm sorry," she said with a smile, "it's just, I'm am so happy that you are still alive. I am going to start calling you a cat with the amount of times you have brushed death."

"I believe you are overreacting, Guinevere." Iraina stated, clearly disturbed by her friend's reaction.

"Overreacting?" Guinevere exclaimed. "You practically were dead! If it weren't for Dagonet keeping you heart going, and Lancelot breathing for you, you probably would not be here right now!"

Iraina was confused. "Keeping my heart going? Breathing for me? What happened?"

Guinevere calmed herself down and told her the tale of what had transpired after she had been pulled from the lake. When she had finished, Iraina was silent for a moment. A small part of her wished that she had been conscious when Lancelot had...kissed...breathed for her. As soon as she realized what she was thinking, Iraina shook those thoughts away. What was wrong with her? Why did these thoughts keep coming to her mind?

"Rain?" Guinevere's softly spoken voice pulled Iraina from her thoughts.

"Yes Gwen?"

"Have they taken the chance?" Iraina looked at her sharply. Then slowly nodded.

"Yes. They did. And I was wrong to misjudge them."

"Good." I have a question for you then."

"Alright." As soon as she agreed to answer the question, Iraina saw the mischievous glint in her friends eye and almost immediately regretted it.

"You watch the one knight a lot. Why?" Iraina raised an eyebrow at her friend.

"I don't know what you are talking about." was her swift reply. Guinevere was barely able to contain her smile, but decided to drop the subject.

"Alright. I will leave you alone for now." she made to leave the wagon, the paused and turned back to Iraina. "Only think, what happens to our country if these knights leave? What will happen to us? We need them. Or, at least, we need Arthur." With those words, she left the tent, leaving Iraina to ponder her words.

After a long day of travel, the caravan finally pulled into the fort. Iraina pushed the furs off of herself, and climbed out of the wagon, to hear the bishop of Rome speaking to Arthur. She was surprised at the frosty tone that came from the reply Arthur had for the bishop.

"Bishop Germanus. Friend of my father." With that he strode away, leaving the bishop gaping behind him. Then Iraina was witness to a beautiful thing in her mind. She watched as Lancelot walked up to the roman soldier who held the box containing their discharge papers. He grabbed all six at one time and handed one out to each of the men, one at a time. Iraina watched as she saw each man's face light up with hope and happiness. They were free.

Suddenly Iraina was grabbed from behind. A hand went around her neck, while another went down her waist, to her leg. She could smell alcohol, and the stench that came from not bathing. "Oh, you're a pretty lady," A greasy voice said into her ear. The man's hand went lower on her leg, and he unknowingly pressed against the arrow wound that she had received on the ice.

Iraina gave a cry of pain as his fingers dug into the wound. Immediately, six knights were standing in front of her and the man holding her, each with a weapon out. Lancelot was the first to speak.

"Let her go _roman_, or I fear you will not take one more step with your life." the dark haired knight said, using the word 'roman' as a slur. The man holding her only took a second to decide before letting go of Iraina and shoving her into the mass of men before her. She stumbled and almost fell, but Lancelot caught her again. With her hands on his chest, she looked up into his dark brown eyes.

"Are you hurt?" he asked. Iraina shook her head.

"His hand aggravated the wound on my leg, that's all." she told him. Pushing off his chest, Iraina tried standing, but found that her right leg wouldn't support much of her weight.

"Here, I'll help you." Lancelot said. Putting his sword away, he placed an arm around her waist, and together, they walked into the meeting room.

**Sorry again for another short chapter, but, I hope you will be satisified until I get the next few up. This story is starting to wind down (maybe) so, I hope you all have been enjoying it!**


	13. Celebration and a Serious Realization

As Lancelot and Iraina made their way slowly into the meeting room, the rest of the knights passed them, and filed one by one into the room. When the final two arrived, Iraina couldn't help the small gasp of surprise that escaped her mouth as she saw the huge round table. There was room at the table for sixty chairs, yet, only seven were filled. Guinevere was standing off to the side of Arthur, her gaze too, was filled with silent wonder.

Lancelot saw them gazing and explained. "When we knights first arrived here, Arthur had us gather in this room. He made this great speech, and basically said, that, for men to be men, they must first all be equal." Iraina could only nod as she looked out at the table. She stared, until finally, she noticed the amused glances of most of the knights. Lancelot helped her to a chair in between Tristan and Gawain, and then strode around the table to his seat, a spot to the left from Arthur's.

A serving man came in at that time, and passed out a cup of wine to each of the knights, and to the two woad women. When he had left, Arthur stood and waited for silence.

"Knights," he started, looking around at each one of them. "Today, let us not forget our friends, our brothers, who could not be here today to share in your freedom." With that, every knight poured out a splash of wine on the floor, and then drank to their fallen comrades. Iraina glanced at Guinevere who shrugged, and then poured her own wine on the floor, with Iraina following soon after, both of them showing their respect for the fallen knights.

After everyone was done, Arthur spoke again. "Now that you are free men, I want to thank you for the most wonderful and trying years of my life." Each of the Sarmation warriors were looking at their leader with respect, and Bors even had tears in his eyes. "Rest now, for tonight, we celebrate!" With that, he raised his cup in the air as the men burst out into cheers. Iraina and Guinevere smiled at each other, both knowing that this was something special that they were witness to. Soon after that, the knights broke up, and each headed off to their own rooms to freshen up and get some rest. Iraina turned to go when a hand on her shoulder stopped her.

Arthur was standing right behind her, his eyes filled with gratitude. "Thank you, Lady Iraina." he said quietly. "If it hadn't been for you, we probably would have lost Dagonet, and in my eyes, I am deeply in your debt. Promise me, that if ever you are in need of something, call on me, so that I might be able to help you." Iraina bowed her head in submission.

"I will my lord. And thank _you._" With that, she turned and limped out of the meeting hall, and headed outside. When she had reached the courtyard, Iraina grabbed a small boy by the shoulder.

"You boy, can you tell me where the stables are?" The little boy nodded and pointed to a long building at the far end of the courtyard. She thanked the boy, and let him go on his way. She followed him with her eyes, and smiled as he ran up to Bors yelling, "Father! Father!"

Making her way slowly through the crowd, Iraina finally made it into the stables. Moving up and down the rows, she searched for her own horse, Dark Wings. Finally tiring of looking for the horse, Iraina whistled three short notes, each at a different pitch. An answering whinny came from one of the furthest stalls. Grinning, Iraina walked as quickly as her injured leg would allow until she reached the big black head that was sticking out of the stall door. Reaching up with her hand, Iraina scratched between his ears, and laughed as Wings lowered his head, urging her to continue scratching. She started talking to him.

"You know Wings, I feel different. I feel... more... alive, I guess." she stopped scratching and paused thoughtfully. "Is different a bad thing?" she asked the horse, laughing as he shook out his mane and butted her hand as though telling her that different was alright as long as she kept scratching.

"You have a beautiful stallion." Iraina whirled around at the sound of the unfamiliar voice, sighing in relief as she recognized Tristan, the knight's scout. She smiled slightly.

"Thank you. I also think that your own mare and hawk are beautiful animals." The silent knight dipped his head in thanks and then turned back to his horse, grabbing a brush from the wall. Iraina watched him curry his horse with a tenderness that she would have thought impossible from the stonic knight. He seemed to know that she was watching him, and suddenly looked up.

"They are my only family in the world, along with the knights." he said by way of explanation. Iraina nodded, and turned back to Dark Wings. She saw a brush hanging on the wall next to his stall and grabbed it. Unlatching the door, she slipped inside, and then started brushing him, taking extra time to fully groom him, a strange feeling in her stomach that told her that this might be the last time she ever groomed the horse.

Suddenly, her leg cramped and it gave way underneath her, making her cry out as she crashed to the floor. Wings snorted and pranced nervously in his stall, not sure what to make of his master falling in his stall.

As soon as she hit the ground, Iraina started swearing in every language that she knew how to. Someone cleared their throat above her, and Iraina stopped her tirade of swear words and looked up into the amused eyes of the scout.

"That's quite a vocabulary you have there." he said smirking slightly at her. Iraina resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

"Well, that's all fine and dandy in your eyes, but could you please help me up?" she snapped, not happy at her body's weakness. Tristan nodded and opened the stall door. Wings lunged at him, trying to protect his mistress, but the scout had fast reflexes. He grabbed the horses head and forced it down, and held his hand under the animal's muzzel, letting him get to know his scent, all the while stroking the horse along his neck. Finally, the stallion settled, and allowed Tristan to help Iraina up. When he set her on her feet, she almost fell again as she placed weight on her leg. In her mind, she silently cursed the Saxon who had shot her. Tristan caught her before she fell, and then just picked her up. Iraina started to protest, but then quieted. There was no point in arguing with this silent knight.

"So, where are you taking me?" she asked.

"To Dagonet's rooms. He's the healer."

"Oh." She was silent the rest of the way there, only glaring at the Romans who had the nerve to leer at her.

When they arrived at the big man's rooms, Iraina had to knock because Tristan had his arms full. When Dagonet opened the door, his eyes widened slightly, and then he moved out of the way to allow them to enter. Tristan wasted no time in walking over to the bed and gently depositing Iraina on it. Before he walked out of the door, Iraina called to him. He stopped and turned around.

"Thank you." Tristan nodded and then turned and walked out, shutting the door behind him. As soon as the door clicked shut, Dagonet rounded on Iraina.

"Now, why am I privy to a visit from you?" he asked, a twinkle in his eye. Iraina smiled at the man, and then pointed to her leg, where blood was beginning to seep through the material of her breeches. Dagonet's brow furrowed.

"I stitched that." he murmured. "It should have held-ah... the roman?" he asked. Iraina nodded. A scowl adorning her features.

"Well, I can fix this up in no time." As he was talking, the big man pulled out a pair of scissors, and a needle and thread. At the sight of the needle, Iraina began to breath slightly faster. Give her a sword or a bow and arrow, and you would have the bravest woman out on the battle field, but when needles were concerned, they were one of her secret fears. One that she couldn't quite figure out. Dagonet noticed that her breathing had quickened and a sweat had started to break out on her forehead. "Are you alright?" he asked concerned. Iraina nodded tight lipped, and looked away, praying that he would be done soon. Dagonet came closer and started to cut away the cloth surrounding her wound. When it was bared to the air, her leg stung and Iraina's gaze swung around just in time to see Dagonet dip the needle into her skin. Her stomach clenched, and she was forced to look away again.

"Oh, gods..." she moaned. Working on her leg, Dagonet smiled. He now knew what was the cause of her trouble. She was afraid of needles, just like one of the knights, pressing his lips together Dagonet kept himself from chuckling. It was ironic that some of the bravest people on the battle field, were afraid of something so small as a needle. Working as swiftly as he could, Dagonet finished sewing up the wound. Grabbing a roll of bandages, he quickly surrounded her leg with it, and tied it off, but not too tightly.

"There." he said, standing from his bent position. "All better, and the needle's put away."

Iraina glared up at the man, silently daring him to tell. Dagonet raised his arms with a chuckle. "Don't fret. I won't tell anyone." Iraina softened her glare, and smiled up at the kind man.

"Thank you. I don't think I could live with the knights teasing me all the time just because I can't handle the sight of a needle going into my skin." Dagonet nodded, and then showed her to the door. She stood there for a moment, looking at the man who was so fierece looking, but so kind inside. Suddenly, he reached forward and grabbed her, pulling her to him to embrace in a hug. Iraina stayed there for a moment, shocked, then slowly, her arms circled the big man, and she hugged him back. After a moment, he pulled away and looked down at her into her eyes.

"Thank you." he said sincerely. "You gave me the chance to taste freedom." With that, he turned and went inside his room, leaving Iraina standing there alone.

A few hours later, the sun had just set, when Iraina was walking through the stone halls, she was grabbed from behind for the second time that day, only this time, it was a happy voice that reached her ears.

"Come dearest Iraina!" exclaimed Gawain as he circled her shoulders with an arm. "It's time to celebrate the Sarmation way!" Iraina rolled her eyes as they came into the tavern.

"And what way is that?" she asked sarcastically. Bors looked up from where he was sitting with a mug of ale in his hands.

"Why, we're all going to drink until we can't piss straight!" he yelled. Iraina laughed and accepted a cup of ale from one of the many barmaids. Taking a large sip, she looked around the tavern. It wasn't a terrible place, in all actuality, it was a rather cozy place when you thought about it. Yes, it was loud, but one could handle that. Letting her eyes slide over everyone there, she picked out each of the knights. Gawain and Galahad were having a knife throwing contest, with their target being a chair that seemed to have been subject to their knives for a long period of time. Dagonet was at the same table as Bors, both of them sharing a drink and talking. Lancelot was easy to find, he was sitting at a round table, with three romans. They seemed to be gambling with dice. Lancelot had a gleeful look on his face, while the three guards each wore a surly look, so she could only guess that he had just won. Walking over to the bar, she was stopped by Lancelot as he pulled her into his lap.

"Ah! There you are! I was about to go and find you, but my luck just has increased so..." he left off and took a large swallow from his drink.

"Come Lancelot!" one of the roman gamblers yelled. "See if you want to test your luck again. If you win, you can keep the prize on your lap, but if you lose, she must come with us and warm our beds!"As the man spoke the words, Iraina tensed in anger. These men were talking about her as though she were some animal to be won. She was about to get up when Lancelot's grip tightened on her waist.

"Begone with you." he snarled. "I tire of your thoughtless blabbing about a person whom I would trust my life with." The romans each glared at the knight, but all three were smart enough not to start a fight with the man. One by one, the pushed back their chairs and walked away. As soon as they left the table, Iraina relaxed.

"And you wonder why we allow our women to partake in the battles as well." Iraina snorted. "These romans need to learn that their women are just as intelligent as the men, or sooner or later, they are going to find themselves with a dagger in their backs." She reached around Lancelot and grabbed his mug, and took a long swallow from it. She finished to find Lancelot staring at her with awe in his features.

"What?" she asked. "Did you think that a woman couldn't drink?" With that, she got up out of the man's lap and gave him a kiss on the cheek, and walked away.

As she was walking away, she was furiously supressing the urge to blush. What was wrong with her? Kissing men on the cheek? Shaking her head slightly, the woad shook it off. As she passed one of the corners, she glimpsed Tristan in the shadows eating an apple. She stopped and looked at the man.

"Why are you hiding in the shadows?" she asked. Tristan shrugged.

"Don't like crowds much."

Iraina nodded. "Well, then, sir knight, would you mind bringing me to the wall so that I may get some fresh air?" The scout nodded and stood, flinging his apple core at the head of a roman who was passed out on the table. Iraina raised an eyebrow at the action, she grinned. These men took every chance they could at causing suffering to romans, with the exception of Arthur, of course. Looking ahead, she noticed that Tristan had disappeared around the corner, so she hurried to catch up with him. As she turned the corner, she ran into a solid wall of flesh. Looking up, she saw the dark brown eyes of the scout through his braids.

"Sorry." she apologized quickly, and backed away, silently berating herself. She really needed to start watching where she was going. She nodded solemnly to the knight and motioned for him to continue leading. As she followed the knight, she let her mind drift to her earlier conversation with Guinevere. They both knew that there was going to be a battle for Britain, but when was the only question. It was going to be soon, but how soon, neither could tell. And then, she remembered how Guinevere had mentioned that she watched Lancelot, and that thought led her to what just had transpired at the tavern. She had to admit that sitting in Lancelot's lap was pleasant... With her thoughts on Lancelot, Iraina didn't notice when the scout stopped again in front of her.

Again, her thoughts were jarred as she ran into the silent man, this time from behind. Iraina metally smacked herself as Tristan turned around. He raised a single eyebrow at her, and this time, Iraina blushed. Again the thought of 'what's wrong with me' came to her mind. She never had been one to blush. Especially over something so small as running into a person. Shaking off the feeling, Iraina followed the man through a door, and up a set of stairs until they came to the top of the wall.

Moving immediately to the edge, Iraina sighed as the wind hit her face. Even though she had been free of that horrible prison for a week now, she still revealed in the feeling of the wind on her face, and she thought that she probably always would. Seeing a way up, Iraina climbed up onto one of the tall watch towers, glad that Dagonet had fixed her leg, noticing that it gave her no trouble.

"Hey you! Get off of there!" Iraina turned to see a roman guard shaking his sword at her. She ignored him and turned back to the dark night. "Hey! I said, get off!" Iraina sighed and turned as the guard called for more guards. Her sharp hearing picked up Tristan quietly talking to the man, and then peace as the romans moved off, leaving her alone.

Tristan walked up next to the watch tower and spoke as though he was talking to the air, his face out to the woods.

"I did not expect that when you asked me to bring you here that you would cause an upstart with the guards."

Iraina snorted. "It's not my fault that the romans have sticks shoved up their asses."

Tristan chuckled, surprising Iraina with the noise. It was the first time that she had actually heard the man laugh. Soon however, her thoughts turned back to the imposing battle. She wondered when the Saxons would be arriving. Suddenly, in the distance, a light flared as a fire was lit. Then another, and another. Suddenly, the entire field above the wall was filled with the soft glow of hundreds of fires.

A deep sense of dread landed in the pit of her stomach. It seemed as though her question had just been answered.

**Boom! Eat that! Three chapters up in two days! I am proud of myself. does happy dance So, yeah, now we are up to date with the eve of the big battle. What do you think will happen? Who should I kill? Cause you all know that someone has to die... lol.**

**I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, because I actually REALLY enjoyed this one. Seriously, I just got this little muse, and I haven't left my computer since 5:00, and it's 8:30 now... so, you all have a nice long chapter! **

**Elvenstar5**


	14. I can't come with you

Iraina could only stare out at the field before her. She took a shaky breath, not liking the feeling of fear that had settled into the pit of her stomach. She tried counting the number of fires in front of her, but stopped after reaching one hundred, knowing that there were at least two hundred fires burning brightly into the dark night. And around each of those fires, there were bound to be at least 10 Saxons. The numbers were daunting, and Iraina didn't want to think about what would happen once they breached the wall.

Swiftly, she climbed down from her lookout, and searched the wall for Tristan. As soon as the fires had appeared, he had turned to tell a guard to find the other knights. One by one, they appeared on the wall, each carefully masking their faces as they saw what lay on the other side of the wall.

Lancelot was the last to arrive. Iraina watched as he went to the wall and stared out at the Saxons. He felt her eyes on him and turned, his own dark eyes, meeting her green ones. They stayed that way for a moment, and Iraina could easily read the pain and confusion in his eyes. Then, just as suddenly, it was as though a shutter had slammed over his eyes, and they turned cold. The dark haired knight turned back towards the field, only turning again when Arthur raced up the stairs, Guinevere following him. Iraina turned towards Guinevere as Arthur looked out across the field. Her dress was rumpled, and it was falling off one shoulder. Catching her friend's eye, the woad warrior only raised an eyebrow in question.

Guinevere blushed and looked down at her feet, not wanting to see the smirk that she knew was forming across her friend's face.

Arthur pulled back from the wall, and silently regarded the men who had been his companions and knights for the past 14 years.

"Knights" he said, looking around at the men gathered on the wall. "My journey with you must end." He paused. "May god go with you." With that he turned and headed back down the steps. Lancelot leaned up against the stones for a moment before angrily pushing off and following his commander. Guinevere and Iraina following right behind the two men. As the followed, Iraina could hear every word that the two men said in the cold night. Iraina was amazed. She never realized how deeply the two friends cared for each other. Iraina could only watch as Lancelot was defeated, and he stood beaten in the middle of the crowded street. He glanced at the two women, before stalking off in the direction of the stables, his normally proud shoulders slumped in defeat.

After a moment's hesitation, Iraina followed after the knight who had twice saved her life.

Iraina entered the stables to find that it was almost completely dark, with only one lamp lit to give light. Cautiously she made her way towards the stalls, wondering how anyone could see once they passed the light from the lamp.

"Lancelot?" she called out timidly. Iraina was surprised at the meekness of her voice. When she received no answer, Iraina continued on, thinking to make her way towards Dark Wing's stall. She felt like she could use the comfort of his special horse love at the moment. As her eyes adjusted to the dark, Iraina could barely make out the form of someone sitting outside the stall next to Wing's.

"Lancelot?" she said again, squinting into the darkness. The figure stood, his frame that of the man she had come to care for.

"Iraina?" he said softly, his voice confused.

"I heard you and Arthur." Lancelot was silent for a moment before letting out a frustrated sigh.

"I don't know anymore! I had thought that once our term had ended, he would go to Rome, and I back to my homeland, both knowing that the other would be safe. But now, when we were so close to freedom, he has to be the man that I know he is, and try to save the lives of people he doesn't even know!" In the dark, Iraina could barely make out the man's eyes, full of pain, confusion and sorrow. She wished that she could somehow help this man, but she knew in her heart, that his bond of friendship with his commander ran deeper than the simple bonds of comradeship, and she knew that he would have to sort out the pain in his own heart.

"So, you are leaving tomorrow?" she asked casually, as if she didn't care about the answer. Lancelot looked at her and nodded. They stood there in the silence, neither knowing what to say.

"And you are staying?" It was Iraina's turn to look at the man.

"Of course. This is my country, if I don't fight to protect it, who will?" With those words, she shouldered past the knight and moved to her horse's stall. Wings had awakened during their conversation, and was sticking his head out of his stall door. Going up to him, Iraina gently stoked his muzzle, and whispered soft nothings to him. A thought came to her, and she turned back to Lancelot.

"Can I ask you of a final favor?" she asked the man.

"And what favor is that?" Iraina looked at the man, and then back at her horse.

"I have a feeling that I won't be seeing Wings again after this night." she bit her lip to keep the tears from falling. "Would-would you take him with you to Sarmatia? Let him live free upon the grassy plains of your home? The ones you spoke to me about. I would gladly let him go if I could have your word that he would be happy, and allowed to run free."

Lancelot just stared at the woman before him. She had just basically told him that she was not expecting to live through the battle. Lancelot was surpised and a little overwhelmed at the rush of feeling that overcame him at the thought of Iraina lying lifeless on the battlefield, a sword through her heart. Hastily he shook the image away and nodded.

"I will. I promise that he will be well taken care of." Lancelot watched as Iraina's eyes filled with glittering, unshed tears, and she turned back to her horse and buried her face into his neck. The large black horse made noises at her, as if trying to comfort his mistress. Sniffing, Iraina pulled away and turned from the horse, trying hard not to let the knight in front of her see her tears.

Before she could take a step in the direction of the stable doors, a hand reached out and grabbed her arm, stopping her, while another one grasped her chin in a firm but gentle grip. Iraina stopped and turned to face the knight. He tilted her head up and brought his other hand to her face. With a gentle thumb, he brushed the tears aside, almost starting when she leaned into his touch.

Iraina felt her heart speed up as Lancelot brushed away the tears from her face. Hesitantly, she raised her eyes until she was looking into his brown ones. The hand that had wiped away her tears had moved to caress her face, while the other went down to settle on her waist. Iraina's lips were dry, and she licked them to bring back the moisture. She felt herself leaning towards Lancelot, her heart hammering in her chest. Closer and closer they came, until their lips were only millimeters apart. Finally, Lancelot closed the distance, and Iraina felt his lips on her own. When he pulled away, Iraina felt cold and incomplete. Reaching up, Iraina placed her hand behind his neck and pulled him down for another kiss. Suddenly, he was devouring her. His lips crashed against hers as he forced her up against the wall. He ran his tongue over her lips, before slipping it into her mouth. Iraina moaned, deep in the pit of her abdomen, a fire had begun to blaze.

When they finally pulled apart, they were both breathing heavily.

"Lancelot", Iraina began, but he silenced her with another breathtaking kiss. Iraina felt that if he hadn't have pushed her against the wall, she would have melted to the floor. Finally, Lancelot stopped his assault, and pulled away, giving the woad woman her space.

For a moment, they stood in the darkness of the stable, the only sound was of their ragged breathing. At last, Iraina pushed herself from the wall, and stood fully on her own feet. Walking back to Wing's stall, she reached up and started to absently run her fingers through his forelock. She heard Lancelot come up behind, and searched for something, anything, to say.

"Tomorrow you leave for you land. And I stay, to fight for mine." She turned back to the man behind her. "This is probably the last time I am going to see you." Lancelot watched her for a moment, a deep pain settling his heart. He made a quick decision, and placed his hands on her arms.

"Come with me." Iraina gave him a blank look, not understanding his full meaning. "Come with me to Sarmation. Leave with me tomorrow, and be spared from the battle." In his mind, Lancelot had no idea why he was compelled to bring this woman back with him. Never before had he ever felt the need for anything besides release from a woman, and this feeling that was beginning to burn inside him confused him.

Iraina turned her head away, but didn't move from his grip.

"I can't Lancelot." she whispered.

"You can! All you have to do is get on your horse with me tomorrow, and we will ride away from here!" he responded fervently, shaking her slightly. Iraina's gaze snapped back to the knight.

"No! I can't! Lancelot! What can I say to make you understand? This land, this place, is my home! You may be able to turn your back on this land in it's time of peril, but I cannot." With that, she sagged in his arms and whispered. "I cannot, even though I wish that I could." Lancelot heard the pain in her voice and pulled her against his chest, wrapping his arms around her. Slowly he rocked back and forth, trying to offer what comfort that he could.

As Iraina was cradled in his arms, she idly noticed the fact that she had never felt so safe or peaceful before. Finally she pulled away and smiled sadly at the man.

"Well, I guess this is goodbye. Promise me again that you will take good care of Wings." Lancelot nodded.

"I promise." Iraina started to walk away, but noticed that Lancelot had moved back to sitting against the stall door.

"Don't you have your own rooms?" she asked, just as he laid his head back against the wood. Lancelot opened his eyes again and looked at the woman standing above him.

"I gave up my rooms to Katherine and Loren. They needed them more than I. Besides, normally, whenever I give up my rooms, I usually go and share a room with Arthur, but..."he trailed off, not needing to say anything more about Arthur and Guinevere.

Iraina nodded absently. She herself had planned to go into the forest with Guinevere, to find the woads, and prepare for the battle the next day, but Iraina didn't want to leave without Guinevere, and, for a strange reason, she didn't want to leave Lancelot. Looking around, she saw a ladder going up into the hay lofts. Going quickly over to it, she climbed it, ignoring the stiffness in her leg. When she reached the top, she was glad to find a large pile of hay that wasn't still in the bales. Leaning over the edge, she called to Lancelot.

"I believe good sir, that this hay would be much more comfortable than that stone floor you are sitting on." Lancelot craned his neck until he could see her up at the top of the lofts. He thought she looked beautiful with her hair falling around her face, and a smile lighting her eyes. Getting up off of the floor, Lancelot brushed off his pants and swiftly climbed the ladder to join her. He nodded his thanks to her for giving him the idea, and laid down on the soft hay. He closed his eyes and was about to fall asleep when he felt someone lay down in the hay next to him. Lancelot opened his eyes to find that Iraina had laid down next to him.

Hesitantly, she inched over until she could put her head on his chest. After a moment of amazement at the beautiful woman who had just laid her head on his chest, Lancelot slowly put his arm around her waist and pulled her to him.

Iraina smiled contentedly as Lancelot put his arm around her, and snuggled more into his chest. He smelled of horse, and leather, and the smell that she had placed as uniquely Lancelot's . Placing her arm over his chest, Iraina closed her eyes, and let sleep come upon her.


	15. I'm Frightened

Iraina woke the next morning before dawn. At first, she panicked at the feeling of an arm around her waste, but soon realized that it was Lancelot. She lay there for a few moments, just letting the moment last for as long as she could. But, even as she lay in the hay next to Lancelot, fears and worries began to assult her mind. Pictures of her friends, and family, fighting and dying. The world that she had grown up in, burning at the hands of the Saxons. Everything that she loved, going up in smoke and flame. With a shudder, Iraina closed her eyes, trying to block out the images that her mind was plaguing her with.

"Iraina?" Lancelot's sleepy voice flitted through and she opened her eyes to find him propped up on one elbow looking at her.

Iraina looked up at him, and then turned away on her side and squeezed her eyes shut, feeling the tears leak from her eyes.

"Iraina, what's wrong?"

Iraina took a shuddering breath, and then forced herself to look into his dark brown eyes.

"Lancelot, I am frightend."

ooooooooooooooooooo

**Woot! I know, i know, VERY VERY short, but be glad that you got that out of me. I mean, i leave in one hour for the airport, and i felt that you should know where i am going to be. I am leaving for Spain. I will be gone from the States until the 17th of August! I get to have LOTS of FUN! And, part of our trip consists of staying, ONE NIGHT at a Spanish Paradore. For those who don't know what that is, it's a castle that has been turned into a hotel! EEEP! YAYAYAYAYAYA! lol. Any who, if you want to know what one we're staying in, go to google and search for Spanish Paradores, and then click on the paradore that is in Cardona. That is where we are staying! And don't worry. There will be LOTS of pics for you all to see. I'll put them in photobucket, so that everyone can see them! Ok? I love you guys! And thanks EVERY ONE for the wonderful reviews! Hugs and kisses to all!**

**p.s. I have 10 hours on a plane, so, you can expect at least three chapters when I get back!**

**BYE!**


End file.
